India’s high sensitivity to oil prices

Cheaper Russian barrels and lower overall crude prices have helped cut key oil consumer’s import bills in election year

A relative reduction in oil prices and a pivot to cheaper volumes have boosted India’s balance sheet. Lower crude prices during the recently concluded 2023–24 financial year (FY), compared with the previous FY, helped the Indian government save $25.1b of foreign exchange. Import volumes remained similar during the last two FYs, which run from 1 April to 31 March. India imported 232.5mt of crude oil in FY 2023–24, compared with 232.7mt in 2022–23. Meanwhile, the price of Brent averaged $83/bl in 2023, down from $101/bl in 2022. Election year This is welcome news for the government as voters head to the polls. “Lower crude oil prices and resultantly lower import bills have been a major respite