Amid mounting US tariffs on India, Russia, on Wednesday, August 20, announced that it will supply crude oil at a 5 percent discount.
“There will be a 5 percent discount, subject to negotiation, on Russian crude oil purchases to India. Despite the political situation, approximately the same level of oil will be imported,” deputy trade representative of Russia to India, Evgeniy Griva said.
On August 6, United States President Donald Trump doubled trade tariffs on India, upto 50 percent, as a “penalty” for New Delhi’s continued buying of Russian oil.
India condemned the “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable” move, which is likely to hit sectors such as textiles, marine and leather exports hard.
The previous day, the Union government informed the Parliament that around USD 48.2 billion of India’s merchandise export to the US is likely to be impacted by the additional tariffs.
“The government has taken note of tariff imposition by the US. It is estimated that around USD 48.2 billion of India’s merchandise export (based on 2024 trade value) to the US will be subject to the above additional tariffs,” Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada said in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha.
According to the minister, a combination of different factors, such as product differentiation, demand, quality, and contractual arrangements, would determine the impact of reciprocal tariffs on India’s exports, including in the textiles sector. No additional tariffs have been imposed on Indian exports to the US in sectors like pharmaceuticals and electronics as yet.
Earlier in the day, a senior Russian diplomat said that US pressure on India for its procurement of Russian crude oil is “unjustified” and hoped that India-Russia energy cooperation to continue “notwithstanding the external pressure.”
China and India are the top two buyers of Russian oil.
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