New Delhi: India has increased the quantity of crude oil it buys from the United States. The rise in October has turned out to be the highest since 2022. Experts believe the change reflects the pricing dynamics that Indian refiners saw in the market. American oil appeared cheaper and more attractive. Russia continues to supply the highest volume of crude oil to India.
India meets most of its energy demand through imports, as the country brings in almost 86 percent of the crude oil it uses. Russian supplies emerged as a key source after the conflict in Ukraine pushed prices and global uncertainty higher. The pattern of purchases from Russia remains strong. The United States has urged India to scale down its oil dealings with Moscow and has imposed a 25 percent tariff on Russian crude that reaches India after refining.
A report by the Times of India, based on data from global shipping analytics firm Kpler, shows that India’s crude imports from the United States climbed to nearly 540,000 barrels per day in October. Industry estimates indicate the figure may reach around 575,000 barrels per day by month-end. Initial export data from the United States points to a possible range of 400,000 to 450,000 barrels per day in November. The yearly average until now has stood close to 300,000 barrels per day.
Sumit Ritolia, an analyst at Kpler, explains that the rise is driven mainly by market dynamics. A wider price gap between Brent and WTI crude made American supplies more attractive to Indian refiners. Softer demand from China also freed up additional volumes for export.
He says that crude shipments from the United States take around 45 to 55 days to reach India. Most cargoes now arriving were booked before Washington imposed fresh sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, two major exporters of Russian crude.
Ritolia cautions that the surge may not last. US crude takes significantly longer to reach India, which drives up shipping and freight costs. The nature of WTI crude also imposes limits, since not all Indian refineries are equipped to process it in large volumes.
But even within those constraints, America’s expanding role in India’s oil basket carries strategic weight. The two nations are pursuing a broader economic cooperation plan that targets 500 billion dollars in bilateral trade by 2030. The United States is already India’s largest export market, and New Delhi currently enjoys a trade surplus in the relationship.
For now, India continues to chase the most competitive deals in the global energy bazaar. The pickup in US crude arrivals in October highlights how pricing and logistics ultimately guide refinery decisions.
Russia still dominates the field, but Washington has carved out more room. How that balance shifts next will depend on the global price dance and the barrels available in the months ahead.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: ZEE News
