Overview
- Refiners across Asia moved quickly after Washington allowed sales of pre‑March 12 Russian cargoes, draining most floating storage and pushing Urals to about an $8-per-barrel premium to Brent.
- India cut total crude imports about 15% in March to 4.44 million barrels a day as Russian medium‑sour barrels that fit local refineries nearly doubled to roughly 2 million barrels a day, lifting Russia’s share to about 44%.
- The Philippines recorded its first Russian crude purchase since 2022 and South Korea received Russian naphtha, while countries such as Indonesia and Thailand explored deals to plug shortfalls from the Gulf.
- The waiver applies only to cargoes loaded before March 12 and runs through April 11, and with floating storage shrinking toward 8 million barrels by late April, the pool of easy-to-buy barrels is narrowing.
- Ukrainian drone strikes reported on the Baltic ports of Ust‑Luga and Primorsk halted operations at Ust‑Luga and briefly disrupted Primorsk, adding export risk that could curb May loadings if repairs slip.