The US 25% duties on India for the purchase of Russian oil. Tankers stopped indicating the route. India continues to buy Russian oil, despite Trump's threats.
Tankers carrying Russian oil have not often indicated their final destination before, being limited to the transit points of the Strait of Gibraltar and the Suez Canal. And now, when the US duties on Indian goods have come into force, they have stopped doing this at all. So, according to AIS, the last tanker that indicated the Mundra terminal is Ursus Maritimus. The vessel left Primorsk on August 20 and indicates that it will arrive in India on September 16. On August 27, when the sanctions came into force, the tanker left the English Channel and entered the Bay of Biscay. It carries up to 113 thousand tons of oil.
The tankers with Russian oil following it from the Baltic ports no longer indicate Indian ports, but only transit points. The ships loaded in Murmansk or in the Black Sea ports of Russia do not do this either.
On August 27, additional 25 percent US duties on Indian goods came into force. Washington claimed that they were introduced for the purchase of Russian oil, whose share in India's imports reached 40%.
The day before, Bloomberg reported that Indian refineries are planning to reduce the volume of purchases of Russian oil in the coming weeks.
"This is a modest concession to Washington's hawks, but also a signal that the country has no plans to break off relations with Moscow," the agency writes.
According to him, public and private refiners, including the large company Reliance Industries, will purchase from 1.4 to 1.6 million barrels per day for shipment in October and beyond.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the introduction of duties an era of "economic selfishness", when countries primarily protect their own interests.
"No matter how great the pressure is, India will continue to build up its strength to resist," the Indian leader said, according to The Economic Times.
At the same time, Delhi associates the introduction of duties more with India's refusal to give full access to American companies to the largest market of agricultural and dairy products.
"The interests of farmers, pastoralists and small businesses are of paramount importance. The pressure may increase, but we will withstand it," said Narendra Modi.
Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar complained that trade negotiations are continuing and the close attention of the United States to the import of Russian oil to India does not apply equally to any China, nor the EU. At the same time, Reuters reported that Indian companies will continue to buy Russian oil for economic reasons, despite the duties.
"There is still no government directive regarding oil purchases from Russia," Subramaniam Jaishankar said. He added that India will continue to make strategic energy choices, rejecting claims that the duties are solely an "oil dispute."
Additional duties will increase the total US tariffs for India to 50% and annual exports of $60 billion will fall under them. The country expects that Indian goods can be replaced in the United States by products from neighboring countries for which duties are lower. Therefore, they are exploring new markets. In addition, the Indian government plans to reduce some of the taxes in the country itself.
"The government has no hope of any immediate relief or delay in U.S. tariffs," a commerce department official told Reuters.
"Analysts estimate that India has saved at least $17 billion by increasing oil imports from Russia since the beginning of 2022. The decision of US President Donald Trump to impose additional duties of up to 50% on Indian imports may lead to a reduction in exports by more than 40%, or almost $ 37 billion, in April-March of this fiscal year alone," The Business Standard writes, citing data from the Global Trade Research Initiative analytical center (GTRI).