Opec’s share of India’s oil imports fell to the lowest in at least two decades in the year to the end of March as overall purchases by Asia’s third largest economy fell to a six-year low, data obtained from industry and trade sources showed.

Total crude imports by the world’s third-biggest oil importer fell to 3.97 million barrels per day (bpd) in the 2021 fiscal year to March 31, down 11.8 per cent from a year earlier, the data showed.

India bought more US and Canadian oil at the expense of that from Africa and the Middle East, reducing purchases from Opec members to around 2.86 million barrels per day and squeezing the group’s share of imports to 72 per cent from 80 per cent.