‘Stopgap measure’ designed to keep oil flowing into global market as Middle East crisis disrupts crude shipments

The US has temporarily allowed India to buy Russian oil currently stuck at sea in an effort to keep global supplies flowing and temper further price increases.

On Thursday the US treasury issued a 30-day waiver allowing India to buy Russian oil, having previously imposed heavy sanctions related to the war in Ukraine.

India was the top buyer of Russian seaborne crude after Moscow’s 2022 Ukraine invasion, but in January its refiners started to reduce purchases under pressure from Washington.

India is vulnerable to energy supply shocks, with crude stocks covering only about 25 days of demand. India receives about 40% of its oil imports from the Middle East through the strait of Hormuz.