India Trumps China To Emerge As The Largest Buyer Of Crude Oil From The US In Q1 2021

In a major development, India has trumped China to become the largest buyer of crude oil from the United States (US) in the just culminated first quarter of 2021, buying an average of 4,21,000 barrels per day (bpd), reports Hindu Businessline.

The average daily import of crude oil from the US has jumped significantly from 2,87,000 bpd in 2020 as India, which is the world's third-largest oil consumer looks at alternate sources of crude amidst a spat with Saudi Arabia.

Also, it should be noted that last year, during the first quarter of 2020, India already stood as the second-largest buyer of crude oil from the US as its imports had jumped by 26 per cent compared to 2019 figures. With this, in the first quarter of 2020, India was already buying almost ten per cent of all the crude oil exported by the US.

This year, the Indian imports of US' crude oil have jumped further ahead. Following India which imported 4,21,000 bpd a day, South Korea stood second with imports of 3,13,000 bpd. Meanwhile, China stood third, importing 2,95,000 bpd from the US.

Meanwhile, it should also be noted that the US resumed oil exports only in January of 2016 after a 40-years-long ban on exports had come to an end.