{
  "id": 1747513,
  "title": "India’s crude import bill surges 41% in July amid West Asia crisis; volumes up 13%",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/indias-crude-import-bill-surges-41-in-july-amid-west-asia-crisis",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-18T16:24:47.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Hindu",
    "slug": "the-hindu",
    "url": "https://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/indias-crude-import-bill-surges-41-in-july-amid-west-asia-crisis-volumes-up-13/article71361781.ece"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "India's crude oil import bill skyrocketed by more than 41% year-on-year to $13.7 billion in July, according to provisional data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC). The surge in international oil prices, driven by ongoing instability in West Asia, led to a 13.3% increase in crude oil imports, reaching 21.4 million metric tonnes (MMT) in July, up from 18.9 MMT in the same period last year. The country's crude oil imports averaged $82.04 per barrel in July, a notable jump from $70.95 a barrel the previous year. Despite the rise in prices, overall crude basket imports remained substantial. Meanwhile, India's liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports saw a modest 1.5% year-on-year increase to 2,915 million standard cubic metres (MMSCM) in July. Despite this, India maintains a heavy reliance on foreign supplies, with crude oil imports constituting 88.5% of its total crude oil consumption. Exports of petroleum products by Indian oil-marketing companies climbed by 10% year-on-year to 5.5 million metric tonnes (MMT) in July, generating $5 billion in revenue, a significant increase from $3.3 billion in the same period last year. Consequently, the nation's net import bill for oil and gas, representing the disparity between imports and exports, surged more than 19% year-over-year to $11.2 billion.",
  "summary": "Episodic events in West Asia had kept prices on benchmark brent crude largely volatile in July this year.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Economic Times",
        "title": "India's outward FDI jumps 17% to $5.7 bn in July",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/indias-outward-fdi-jumps-17-to-5-7-bn-in-july",
        "published": "2026-08-18T18:14:24.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}