According to a Bloomberg report, Russian oil has been selling at a significant discount to Saudi crude, and as a result, Russia’s share of the Indian oil market is increasing at the expense of imports from Saudi Arabia. In June, Russia overtook Iraq as the largest oil exporter to India, which remained the subcontinent’s top oil provider.

Following the start of the war in February, India and China emerged as important consumers of Russian oil as Europe started to reduce its purchases. By the end of the year, when an embargo will take effect, the EU wants to halt practically all imports of Russian crude and fuel.

However, China and India, two massive Asian economies that rely on imports for their energy needs, have only been too pleased to take some of the oil that Europe is ignoring. The two made up 55% of Russia’s seaborne oil shipments as of July.

India, which gets around 85% of its oil from imports, has seen a particularly noticeable change in oil supply. In terms of sub continental suppliers last year, Russia came in ninth place. Things now appear very different due to the less expensive Russian crude.

According to figures by Bloomberg, Russian oil sold for $19 less per barrel than Saudi petroleum in May, a gap that dropped to $13 per barrel in June. In fact, as European consumers looked for alternatives to Russian