India’s crude oil imports rose 11.2% month-on-month to 5.04 million barrels per day (mbd) in May, the highest level since the outbreak of the Iran conflict and potentially the strongest-ever import volume for the month, as refiners stepped up purchases of Russian and Venezuelan crude while rebuilding domestic inventories. Kpler data showed crude imports increased by about 509,000 barrels per day from 4.53 mbd in April and were significantly higher than the country’s 2025 average import level of around 4.8 mbd.