India's Russian oil imports hit record high amid US tariff threats

India's reliance on Russian crude oil reached a record high in July, with imports accounting for 50.83% of the country's total oil imports, totaling approximately 2.47 million barrels per day. This represents a 62.4% increase compared to the previous year.

However, this dependence faces significant economic risks due to proposed US legislation that could impose a 100% tariff on buyers of Russian oil. Economist Santosh Mehrotra suggests that a 50% reduction in Russian oil purchases could increase India's annual import bill by $5 billion to $10 billion and raise inflation by approximately 0.3 percentage points.

Such a reduction could also widen India's current account deficit and impact overall economic growth. While Indian refiners previously attempted to reduce Russian imports to avoid US tariffs, supply disruptions in the Middle East have necessitated continued sourcing from Russia.