India's crude oil import bill rises 47% in September

The net oil and gas import bill also climbed nearly 40% to $13.4 billion, driven by higher import costs and declining petroleum exports.

India's crude oil import expenditure jumped 47 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to $15.4 billion in September 2026, driven by a sharp increase in international oil prices amid escalating tensions in West Asia, according to data released by the Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell (PPAC).

The increase in spending was significantly higher than the growth in import volumes. India imported 21.7 million tonnes (mt) of crude oil in September, up 7 per cent from 20.3 mt in the corresponding month last year.

The surge in the import bill coincided with a steep rise in crude prices. The Indian crude oil basket averaged $116.09 per barrel in September, compared with $69.61 per barrel a year earlier, highlighting the growing cost of meeting the country's energy requirements.

Crude oil accounts for nearly a fifth of India's total merchandise imports, making the country particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in global energy prices. Despite rising costs, India has continued to secure supplies to meet domestic demand amid disruptions to international energy trade.

Supply concerns have intensified following disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and threats to traffic through Bab-el-Mandeb, a strategic maritime passage connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Both routes are critical to global energy transportation, and the disruptions have added pressure to supplies from West Asia.

Russia remained India's biggest crude oil supplier in September, accounting for 35 per cent of the country's total imports, according to maritime intelligence firm Kpler.

Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait were among the other leading suppliers. Together, the five countries accounted for approximately 70 per cent of India's crude oil imports during the month.

The rise in crude oil prices, coupled with lower earnings from petroleum exports, also pushed up India's overall net oil and gas import bill.

The bill, which measures expenditure on imports of crude oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), after accounting for revenue from refined petroleum product exports, climbed nearly 40 per cent year-on-year to $13.4 billion in September.

India spent $15.4 billion on crude oil imports and another $1.2 billion on LNG imports during the month. Meanwhile, petroleum product exports generated $4.8 billion in revenue. Petroleum exports declined 24.6 per cent year-on-year in September, further weighing on the country's net energy trade balance.

The pressure on India's energy import expenditure has also become evident in the first half of the current financial year.

Between April and September 2026, the crude oil import bill increased 46.4 per cent year-on-year to $90.6 billion. Over the same period, the net oil and gas bill rose 35 per cent to $81.1 billion.

The widening import bill underscores the impact of elevated global energy prices on India's external trade finances, particularly as the country continues to depend heavily on overseas suppliers to meet its crude oil requirements.