Russia reportedly shifts oil exports to China after Trump's India tariffs

Tim Zadorozhnyy 

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Russian oil companies are redirecting shipments of Urals crude from India to China after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed new tariffs on New Delhi over energy cooperation with Moscow, Bloomberg reported on Aug. 9.

Bloomberg, citing undisclosed traders familiar with the matter, wrote that barrels of Urals oil are now being offered at a discount to both state-owned and private Chinese refineries.

The deliveries are scheduled for October from Russia's western ports, and prices have been cut by $1 per barrel.

The move follows Trump's Aug. 6 executive order imposing a 25% tariff on Indian imports. The White House said the measure responds to India's continued purchase of Russian oil and weapons despite the ongoing war in Ukraine.

An earlier 25% tariff, effective from Aug. 1, had already increased pressure on Indian buyers.

Bloomberg's sources said the discounted offers are being made by traders linked to the Kremlin, including Litasco, the main trading arm of Russian oil giant Lukoil.

Until now, India had become one of the largest buyers of Russian seaborne crude. Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Indian imports of Russian oil surged more than 20-fold, reaching over 2 million barrels per day.

At the start of 2022, Russian oil made up just 0.2% of India's energy mix.

That trend reversed after Trump's latest tariff threat. According to Reuters, Indian state-owned refiners began halting Russian oil purchases. Bloomberg reported that the Indian government has instructed oil firms to prepare alternative supply plans.

Alexandra Filippenko, an American studies expert, previously said that although New Delhi has kept its ties with Russia, U.S. influence is still much more significant.

"The American market is, of course, very important for India — far more important than Russia, and far more important than cheap Russian oil," she told the Kyiv Independent.