India's crude imports down 3% since August last year but bill up 18%

NEW DELHI: India's crude oil imports fell 3% in Aug from a year earlier while the import bill increased by over 18%, as renewed hostilities in West Asia disrupted energy supplies.Provisional data compiled by Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell showed that India imported 19 million tonnes (MT) of crude in Aug, compared with 19.6 MT a year earlier. It spent $11.7 billion on crude purchases, up from $9.9 billion a year ago, reflecting the surge in global oil prices.