Jan 27 (Reuters) — India’s crude oil imports rose 1.6% month-on-month in December to 21.59 million metric tons, their highest level since March, government data showed on Tuesday.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
India is the world’s third-biggest oil importer and consumer, and this data is an important indicator of its oil demand.
BY THE NUMBERS
On a yearly basis, crude oil imports rose 6.9%, from 20.20 million tons in December 2024, data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell shows.
Meanwhile, imports of crude oil products fell about 5.9% on a yearly basis to 4 million tons in December, while product exports declined about 6% to 5.41 million tons.
CONTEXT
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday signaled the potential removal of additional 25% tariffs on India following a reduction in Indian imports of Russian oil, after President Donald Trump had threatened New Delhi with an increase in tariffs unless it met Washington’s demand to curb purchases of Russian oil.
India’s oil refiners continue to seek alternatives to Russian oil, with Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd set to buy 12 million oil barrels for $780 million from Brazil’s Petrobras in fiscal 2027, a government statement said on Friday, while Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd is exploring purchases of Venezuelan oil.
India’s Reliance Industries Ltd, operator of the world’s largest refining complex, is set to receive sanctions-compliant Russian oil in February and March after a one-month pause, four sources familiar with the matter said.
NOTE: The data for imports and exports is preliminary because private refiners share numbers at their discretion.
All figures are in millions of metric tons:
2025 2025 2025 2024 2024 2024
CRUDE Decembe Novembe Octobe Decembe Novembe October
OIL r r r r r
IMPORTS 21.59 21.24 21.01 20.20 18.95 19.94
Imports:
2025 2025 2025 2024 2024 2024
PRODUCT Decembe Novembe October Decembe Novembe October
S r r r r
Petrol 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Naphtha 0.03 0.11 0.11 0.05 0.17 0.05
Kerosen 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
e
Diesel 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Fuel 0.18 0.48 0.62 0.61 0.61 0.74
Oil
All 4.00 4.22 4.13 4.25 4.65 4.68
Exports:
2025 2025 2025 2024 2024 2024
PRODUCT Decembe Novembe October Decembe Novembe October
S r r r r
Petrol 1.55 1.52 1.37 1.47 1.24 1.12
Naphtha 0.39 0.51 0.28 0.43 0.44 0.33
Diesel 2.34 2.31 2.71 2.49 2.29 2.35
Fuel 0.19 0.07 0.07 0.19 0.18 0.20
Oil
Jet 0.63 0.60 0.51 0.84 0.74 0.66
Fuel
All 5.41 5.25 5.12 5.75 5.34 5.05
NOTE:
Totals may not match exactly as not all items are included in the table and figures are rounded.
(Reporting by Pablo Sinha in Bengaluru; Barbara Lewis)