Share of Russian oil in Indian imports rises to 38%, premium paid jumps 425% in April 2026

Russia’s stock successful the worth of India’s lipid exports jumped backmost up to a 11-month precocious of astir 38% successful April 2026 arsenic India continued to summation its dependence connected it against the backdrop of the ongoing West Asia crisis. 

This expanding dependence was accompanied by a 425% leap successful the premium being charged by Russia for its oil, successful opposition to the discount it had been offering until recently.  

Russia’s stock stood astatine astir 34% successful presumption of the measurement of India’s lipid imports successful April 2026. At the aforesaid time, India’s dependence connected lipid from the U.S. fell to multi-month lows successful presumption of some worth and volume. 

Oil imports backmost up

An investigation of information from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry shows that India’s full lipid imports bounced backmost to 195.3 lakh tonnes successful April 2026 aft having dipped successful March to 158.5 lakh tonnes pursuing the commencement of the West Asian crisis. 

However, portion this worked retired to a 23% summation implicit March 2026 successful presumption of volume, the surging terms of lipid meant that India’s full lipid import measure jumped 61.3% successful April 2026 to $15.4 cardinal arsenic compared to its level successful the erstwhile month. 

Within this, the measurement of India’s lipid imports from Russia stood astatine astir 67 lakh tonnes successful April 2026, 27% higher than successful March and making up 34.3% of the full magnitude of lipid India imported successful April. 

Expensive Russian oil

Here, too, the rising terms had a important interaction connected the magnitude India paid for this oil. The Hindu had reported past period that the discount Russia utilized to connection India for its lipid had turned into a premium successful March 2026. 

The information present shows that India paid an adjacent higher premium for Russian lipid successful April 2026 than it did successful March. The full worth of India’s Russian lipid imports stood astatine $5.8 cardinal successful April 2026, which was 37.7% of India’s full lipid import measure that month. 

In April, India paid Russia $864.9 per tonne for its lipid portion it paid $787.1 per tonne wide for its lipid imports from each countries. This works retired to a premium of $77.8 per tonne arsenic compared to a premium of $14.8 per tonne paid to Russia successful March 2026, a 425% increase.

On the different hand, the U.S. accounted for 2.9% of India’s lipid measure successful April 2026, an eight-month low. In presumption of value, it accounted for 3.8%, besides an eight-month low.