India is buying record volumes of russian oil despite US sanctions

Indian oil refineries have increased their purchases of russian crude oil, whilst intermediaries are helping them circumvent US sanctions.

This is according to Bloomberg.

Last month, more than 2.3 million barrels of russian oil per day were unloaded at Indian ports. Volumes in July remain at a similar level. By way of comparison, before the full-scale invasion, purchases were virtually zero. India’s increased imports are helping Moscow avoid a build-up of crude at sea.

Despite US sanctions against russia’s largest producers, the use of intermediary networks has enabled the russians not only to maintain but also to increase their shipments. The sharp rise in supplies to India has taken place against a backdrop of declining exports from the Gulf states and a significant fall in the price of russian oil, which has been falling for 13 consecutive weeks and currently stands at just over half of its mid-April peak.

The overall average four-week volume of seaborne exports from russia remains close to its all-time high – 4.16 million barrels per day for the period up to 19 July. Since the start of the year, the average volume of seaborne exports has been 3.62 million barrels per day – 280,000 more than the average for the whole of last year, and higher than the annual averages since the start of the full-scale invasion.

Source: iPress