India's crude oil imports reached a record high in February, as refiners purchased Saudi crude to replace Russian oil affected by Western sanctions. This reflects how U.S. pressure is reshaping global supply patterns.

Earlier this month, the U.S. President stated that India had agreed to halt oil purchases from Russia as part of a trade agreement, under which the U.S. would reduce tariffs on Indian goods from 50% to 18%. However, a recent Supreme Court ruling has deemed the President's global tariffs illegal, casting uncertainty over the future of the agreement, although the U.S. administration has urged countries to adhere to existing deals.

Following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, India became a major buyer of Russian oil, benefiting from significant discounts as Western nations avoided supplies from Moscow. The Indian Prime Minister has confirmed the tariff agreement with the U.S. but did not provide details regarding crude imports at the time.

Preliminary data from Kpler shows that India’s average daily crude imports this month reached 5.3 million barrels, surpassing the previous record of 5.26 million barrels per day set in March 2025.

The February total is not yet final and may increase or decrease depending on whether scheduled cargoes are actually unloaded by the end of the month. Since import data is calculated based on the actual unloading time of shipments at ports, any changes in shipping schedules can alter the overall figures.

So far in February, Russia's daily crude shipments to India have averaged 1.12 million barrels, the lowest monthly inflow since the end of 2022. This shortfall has been largely filled by Saudi Arabia, whose supplies to India are expected to exceed 1 million barrels per day by the end of the month—significantly higher than the typical historical level of around 700,000 barrels per day and above the 2025 average of 638,000 barrels per day.

According to Kpler analysts, supported by the surge in Saudi crude supplies, India’s refinery crude throughput—the volume of crude processed by refineries—is expected to remain near the record high of 5.67 million barrels per day set in February of last year.