Donald Trump's threat to impose 25% tariffs on all goods entering the US from countries importing Venezuelan gas or oil, brandished on Monday, March 24, could have disastrous consequences for the Indian economy. The world's third-largest consumer of crude oil, India imports 85% of its needs. It buys mainly from Russia, its primary supplier since the start of the war in Ukraine; and from Iraq, its second-largest supplier; but also from Venezuela.

India was even the biggest buyer of Venezuelan crude between December 2023 and January 2024. Taking advantage of the lifting of US sanctions against Venezuela, its imports, which had been halted in 2020, resumed in full force, rising from around 191,600 barrels per day in 2023 to more than 254,000 barrels per day in 2024, according to data from Kpler. The main buyers were Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd and Nayara Energy.

Since then, the share of Venezuelan oil in India's total oil imports, which amount to over 4.5 million barrels a day, has fallen. India imported around 65,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan crude in January and 93,000 in February.

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