Gov't To Continue To Buy Cheap Russian Oil-RTRS

Reuters is reporting that according to a source, the Indian gov't plans to continue with its purchases of cheap Russian oil.

• Says that India's oil basket stands at over USD100/bbl.
• If confirmed this news will come as a blow to the US and others in the Western alliance that had sought to convince India to pull back from its continued purchase of Russian hydrocarbons.
• The Quad meeting earlier this week involving PM Narendra Modi alongside US President Joe Biden, Japanese PM Fumio Kishida, and new Australian PM Anthony Albanese involved sideline discussions between Modi and Biden that are believed to have focused heavily on India's continued economic involvement with Russia.
• Western calls unlikely to be heeded, though. Indian gov't remains focused on domestic market and will not want to exacerbate price pressures by competing with Western nations for non-Russian oil.
• Moreover, domestic opinion on Russia remains much more positive in India than the West, meaning there is little-to-no backlash to the gov'ts decisions on continuing to purchase energy resources from Russia.