India's Iran Crude Imports Exceed 500,000 bpd

That is more than 16%, or 83,000 bpd, higher than the purchases in June, ISNA reported. According to ministry data, Iran has supplied an average of 438,000 bpd of crude to India this year. India, the world's third-largest oil consumer after the US and China, is a major customer of Iranian crude. But the country's state refiners are planned to buy less Iranian crude in the fiscal 2017-18. According to Reuters, India's imports of Iranian crude fell 16.3% on the month to 414,900 bpd in July, and are down 20.7% from a year ago. To make up for the shortfall from Iran, Indian refiners have turned to the spot market and picked up sour crude from Iraq and Russia among others to meet their demand. India's Russian crude imports in July more than tripled to 148,600 bpd from a year ago, Financial Tribune reported.