India’s Russian imports soar 400% as U.S. offers little resistance

• Russia was India’s No. 4 “merchandise import source nation” from Apr 22 to Jan 23, after China, the United Arab Emirates and the U.S. The total value of Russian imports came to USD37.31bn, up from USD7.71bn from Apr 21 to Jan 22. This translates to growth of 384%, with Russia accounting for a 6.2% share of India’s total imports.
• As a result, New Delhi’s export of petroleum products also jumped significantly. From Apr 22 to Jan 23, these exports were worth USD78.58bn, up from USD50.77bn from Apr 21 to Jan 22.
• Washington, despite its staunch opposition to Russia, has signalled that it is “comfortable with the approach” India is taking on Russian oil.
• “Even though India is not a participant in the price cap coalition, India has effectively used its negotiating leverage, which it derives from the price cap and the fact that large portions of the global markets are no longer accessible to Russia, to drive down the price that it pays for Russian crude,” Geoffrey Pyatt, assistant secretary for energy resources said. “That’s a benefit to India, it’s a benefit to the Indian economy, but it also helps to advance our two goals of stabilizing global markets and denying resources to the Kremlin.”
• Sanjay Kumar Pandey, a professor of Russian, Central Asian and East European studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, explained that if India were to jettison Russia, then Russia would grow even to China, and that is something which is not either in the interest of India or the U.S.

External Link : https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Trade/India-s-Russian-imports-soar-400-as-U.S.-offers-little-resistance