Oil from Russia, which India refused amid US pressure, is being bought by Chinese refineries. This is reported by Bloomberg, according to UNN.
Chinese refineries are buying Russian oil that India is shunning, helping Moscow overcome a drop in purchases by the country that is usually its largest buyer of seaborne barrels.
Deliveries of Russian crude oil to Chinese ports rose to 2.09 million barrels per day in the first 18 days of February, according to vessel tracking data. The increase - from 1.72 million barrels per day for the whole of January and 1.39 million in December - more than offset the decline from India.
It is noted that Russia's ability to find buyers for its oil is vital for the Kremlin as the war in Ukraine approaches its four-year mark, and there are also signs of pressure on production and drilling rates. At the same time, the US is pressuring Indian refineries to stop buying crude oil from Moscow.
Russian oil imports to India have remained at around 1.2 million barrels per day in recent months, down from 1.78 million in November, and about 40% below the recent peak recorded last June.
According to tracking data, in December, Urals crude oil shipments to China increased to 600,000 barrels per day. This is the highest figure since 2018. Given that more than 20 cargoes have not yet been unloaded, and approximately half of them still do not have a final destination, this figure may increase.
Recall
India will import the largest amount of crude oil from Saudi Arabia in over six years this month, as the South Asian country faces continued US pressure to reduce purchases of Russian oil products.