The price of Russian Urals oil dropped 30% between early March and mid -April to $ 78 per barrel from $ 111 per barrel.
China and India continue to buy large volumes of oil from Russia, despite the war in Ukraine. This was reported by the Japanese newspaper Nikkei on Thursday, April 21, citing Refinitiv data based on tracking the movement of oil tankers.
Thus, from the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 and until April 18, a total of 380 oil tankers left the Russian Federation – more than the same period last year (357). And after the events in the city of Bucha – from April 2 to April 18 – the number of oil tankers departing from Russia reached 119 (109 last year).
Of the 380 ships, 115 went to Asian countries: 52 to China, 28 to South Korea, 25 to India, 9 to Japan and one to Malaysia.
Deliveries to India rose eight times compared to the same period last year, to China – by 33%, to other countries – down 16%.
Western countries, especially the United States and Great Britain, have announced the cessation of Russian oil imports in response to the actions of the Russian Federation in Ukraine. Even before that, some oil companies, including BP and Shell, had vowed to stop buying oil from Russia amid pressure from shareholders, reputational risks and logistics problems.
As a result, the price of Russian Urals oil in Europe fell by 30% between early March and mid -April to $ 78/bbl from $ 111/bbl, according to data from Refinitiv.
Against this background, Russian oil has become attractive to consumers who are not afraid of public attention to their purchases, says Vanda Insights founder and CEO Vandana Hari.
“Singapore authorities, for example, do not oblige local companies to avoid Russian oil, and Asian companies are generally not required to take a stand against Moscow,” the Nikkei expert was quoted as saying.
India and China are likely to continue buying Russian oil, analysts say.
“While the two countries’ oil imports didn’t increase significantly in March, we are likely to see an increase in purchases over the next two or three months, ”Daniel Gerber, CEO of Petro-Logistics, told the Nikkei. in an interview.
Earlier in April, US President Joe Biden told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that buying more oil from Russia was not in India’s interest and could disrupt the US response to Russia’s war against Ukraine. It was soon learned that the Indian oil corporation IOC had removed several grades of oil from its tender, including the Russian Urals.
The media also reported that China is avoiding buying oil from Russia under the new contracts. Chinese refiners did not buy Russian oil shipments for May delivery, sources said.
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Source: korrespondent
