The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) has expressed concern over the potential impact on India’s textile and apparel exports because of the likely additional tariffs planned by the US following the signing of the ‘Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026’ by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ashwin Chandran, chairman of CITI, said in a press release that the U.S. is the single-largest market for India’s textile and apparel exports. “Any additional tariffs under this Act will be very difficult to absorb for the MSME-dominated Indian textile and apparel sector that is already under stress due to several factors, including the continuing turmoil in West Asia. It will severely impact our ability to sell in the U.S., our most significant market,” he said.

“We eagerly look forward to the Union government engaging more closely with the U.S. to ensure that Indian exporters are not disadvantaged and rendered completely uncompetitive,” he said. A fair, balanced, and equitable bilateral trade deal between India and the U.S. is the need of the hour.

Balanced and predictable trade framework could strengthen bilateral commercial engagement, and support the long-term competitiveness of the textile and apparel sectors in both countries.

Although the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) signed by India would open new markets for Indian exporters, these FTAs could not substitute the U.S. market for the textile and apparel sector. “The FTAs offer a lot of potential, but the gains from these … will take time to materialise,” he said.

As petrol and diesel prices were raised by ₹2.61-2.71 per litre on Monday (May 25, 2026), marking the fourth increase in less than two weeks, Opposition leaders stepped up their attack on the Narendra Modi government, accusing it of burdening consumers and failing to shield the public from rising costs.

While Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge described the increase as “daily robbery”, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi termed Prime Minister Narendra Modi “mehangai manav” [inflation man].

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor Arvind Kejriwal questioned why India was not sourcing cheaper crude oil from Russia and Iran.

The latest increase took cumulative hikes in petrol and diesel prices since May 15 to nearly ₹7.5 per litre, pushing fuel prices to their highest levels since May 2022 and raising concerns over inflation and transportation costs.

In a post on X, Mr. Kharge said the “daily assault of fuel loot” was continuing, noting that this was the fourth hike in ten days. “The Modi government has sprinkled petrol to burn the savings of common people,” the Congress chief said.

Mr. Kharge alleged that despite international crude oil prices not witnessing an increase comparable to that seen during the UPA years, retail fuel prices have risen sharply under the present government. He claimed petrol prices have increased from ₹71.41 per litre in 2014 to ₹102.12 in 2026, while diesel prices rose from ₹56.71 to ₹95.20 during the same period.

“profit over people”

The Congress president also linked Monday’s (May 25) hike to gains in shares of public sector oil companies and alleged that the government prioritised “profit over people”.

“Every fuel price hike is another blow to household budgets,” he said, adding that farmers and micro, small and medium enterprises were among those most affected. “We repeat. Who is benefitting from this daily robbery?” Mr. Kharge asked.

‘Mehangai manav’

Mr. Gandhi also attacked the Prime Minister, alleging that fuel prices were being increased in “instalments”. “‘Mehangai manav’ Modi strikes again. He raises petrol and diesel prices in instalments—ensuring that your pockets are quietly picked, bit by bit,” he said in a post on X.

Mr Gandhi claimed that he had warned of an impending economic storm, but the government had delayed the increases because of elections. “‘Mehangai manav’ Modi has just one job: promises during elections, and attacking people’s pockets at other times,” he said.

Mr. Kejriwal said rising inflation was imposing hardship on “140 crore people” and asked what compulsion prevented the government from purchasing cheaper fuel. “Russia and Iran are offering us cheaper and sufficient oil and gas. Why is Prime Minister Narendra Modi not buying cheap oil from them?” he asked in a video message on X.

Congress spokesperson Ragini Nayak widened the criticism beyond fuel prices, raising concerns over oil supply disruptions and the economy. She asked what the government did to bring back ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz.

The share of Russian crude oil in Bharat Petroleum’s overall basket has increased to about 40-41% from about 31% during quarter-ended March 2026, Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta, Director for Finance of the state-owned oil-marketing company, told investors in an analyst call on Wednesday (May 20, 2026).

Mr. Gupta attributed the increased quantum of Russian crude also to its greater availability in the spot market.

“Percentage of Russian [crude] cargo has definitely gone up. It was 31% in the fourth quarter (of FY 2025-26), but in the current period, most of the supply on a spot basis, Russian crude is more available; therefore, offtake is higher at about 40-41%,” Mr. Gupta told investors.

According to the senior executive, Russian crude constituted about 25% of the overall basket in the third quarter of the previous financial year.

Responding to a query about the impact of U.S. sanctions, Mr. Gupta explained that, rather than Russian crude being sanctioned, certain entities were sanctioned. He maintained that BPCL made its purchases only from non-sanctioned entities.

“During the waiver you could buy Russian crude from any party, and with the lapse of waiver you can only buy from non-sanctioned entities,” he stated. “Whatever Russian crude we buy is always from non-sanctioned entities, be it the cargo vessel, port or supplies – those should be non-sanctioned entities.”

‘Crude supplies secured till July this year’

Overall, the official said that it has secured crude oil supply until July this year.

“We have diversified to eight new grades of crude [oil] during the year, covering four geographical regions,” he stated. “I would also like to assure that crude supplies have been secured till July 2026.”

Elaborating on the diversification, Mr. Gupta told analysts that Bharat Petroleum tested varied grades of crude in the previous financial year, including those from North America and Middle East spot cargoes.

“WTI is one destination we have tried, [alongside] Venezuelan crude we have also tried, and Middle Eastern spot grades are also available, like Murban, among others,” he stated. “Last year, we [also] tested new grades, that is, Venezuelan, Brazil and Angola. In spot many of the grades are available but major source continues to be Russia.”

Higher landed cost

In response to a query about landing costs considering the elevated freight and insurance costs, Mr. Gupta stated that they were indicatively higher by about $12 for every barrel, although adding that they are dynamic and change regularly.

“It [the landing cost-led premium] all depends on which source we take crude from but indicatively, in today’s date if you want to finalise any deal, if brent crude is $110 per barrel, maybe our landing [cost] would be about $120-122 per barrel though it is constantly changing,” he stated.

Separately, the senior executive told investors before the war, the additional cost for WTI crude used to be “brent plus $4-5” which escalated to approximately “$20 at the peak of the war”.

The EU on Wednesday (April 22, 2026) gave the green light to unblock a €90 billion ($106 billion) loan for Kyiv, after the deadlock was broken in a months-long row between Ukraine and Hungary over a damaged pipeline.

Diplomats said the definitive sign-off should come by Thursday (April 23, 2026) as Budapest waits for Russian oil to arrive through the Druzhba pipeline after Kyiv said operations had restarted.

The bitter feud over the pipeline pitted Hungary’s nationalist premier Viktor Orban against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, stalling the vitally needed funds for Kyiv.

The U.S. Treasury Department is issuing a “ temporary 30-day waiver to allow Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil”, according to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

In a statement on X on Friday (March 6, 2026), Mr. Bessent said the move aims to enable oil to keep flowing into the global market amid the war in West Asia that has disrupted oil supply.

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“This deliberately short-term measure will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government as it only authorises transactions involving oil already stranded at sea,” said Mr. Bessent.

“This stop-gap measure will alleviate pressure caused by Iran’s attempt to take global energy hostage.”

He went on to say that the U.S. expects India to ramp up purchases of U.S. oil as India is an “essential partner”.

India has been continuously reducing Russian oil imports and had instead sourced more from the Gulf countries and the U.S. in January 2026, the latest official data shows, with Russia’s share in India’s oil imports falling to less than 20% for the first time since May 2022.

However, a potential trade deal with the U.S. — allegedly the main reason for India reducing cheap Russian oil imports — is currently in limbo following the U.S. Supreme Court’s February 20 decision striking down that country’s reciprocal tariffs. 

Reliance Industries ‌Ltd, operator of the world’s largest refining complex, ​is set to receive sanctions-compliant Russian oil in February and March after a one-month pause, four sources familiar with the matter said.

Reliance last received Russian crude in December after securing a one-month U.S. concession that allowed it to winddown dealings with the sanctioned Russian oil producer Rosneft beyond a November ​21 deadline.

Like other Indian refiners, Reliance will buy ⁠Russian oil from non-sanctioned sellers, the sources said, without elaborating on the number of February and March cargoes that the refiner has booked.

It is not clear if ​the private refinery will ⁠continue to buy Russian oil beyond March.

Reliance did not respond to a Reuters email seeking comment.

Refiners boost Middle East crude imports

Despite Reliance’s return, India’s overall Russian oil imports are ‌expected to stay subdued through February and March, the ‌sources added.

Reliance had been importing Russian crude under a long-term agreement with Rosneft for 500,000 barrels per ‍day (bpd) for its 1.4 million bpd Jamnagar refinery complex in Gujarat.

The European Union has said from January 21 it will ‍not take fuel produced at refineries that received or processed Russian oil 60 days prior to the bill-of-lading date.

Reliance has said it will process the cargoes that arrived after November 20 at its India-focused 660,000 barrels per day plant, allowing it to continue selling fuels to the EU from its 704,000 bpd export-oriented refinery.

Refiners in India, which became the top buyer of discounted Russian ⁠seaborne crude following the 2022 outbreak of war in Ukraine, are recalibrating their crude import strategies, raising Middle ​Eastern purchases as they shift away from Russia.

“We have faced ⁠instances where sanctions were imposed suddenly and we had to cut back,” Srinivas T, chief operating officer, refinery and marketing, at Reliance, said last week.

Reliance had ramped up purchases from national oil companies elsewhere ahead of time ⁠to avoid spot market disruptions, he
said.

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty fell sharply by nearly 1% on Thursday (January 8, 2026), continuing their weak momentum for the fourth straight session, due to renewed concerns over potential U.S. tariff hikes amid widespread selling pressure in global markets.

Deep losses in metal, oil & gas, and commodity stocks amid unabated foreign fund outflows added to the pressure, analysts said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 780.18 points, or 0.92%, to settle at 84,180.96. During the day, it plummeted 851.04 points, or 1%, to 84,110.10.

The 50-share NSE Nifty tumbled 263.90 points or 1.01% to 25,876.85.

From the 30-Sensex firms, Larsen & Toubro, Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, Reliance Industries, Tata Steel, and Trent were among the biggest laggards.

On the other hand, Eternal, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance and Bharat Electronics were the gainers.

U.S. President Donald Trump has backed a sanctions bill that could impose 500% tariffs on countries buying Russian oil, giving the White House leverage against countries like China and India to stop them from purchasing cheap oil from Moscow.

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham on Wednesday (January 7, 2026) said the legislation would give the White House “tremendous leverage” against countries like China, India and Brazil to incentivise them to stop buying cheap oil from Russia.

“Domestic markets extended losses as sentiment turned cautious amid renewed concerns over U.S. tariffs and persistent Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) outflows, overshadowing optimism around earnings growth,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited said.

In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi index was higher, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai’s SSE Composite index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended lower.

Markets in Europe were trading marginally lower. U.S. markets ended mostly lower on Wednesday (January 7).

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.75% to $60.42 per barrel.

On Wednesday (January 7), the Sensex declined 102.20 points, or 0.12%, to settle at 84,961.14. The Nifty went down by 37.95 points or 0.14% to 26,140.75.

U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated that India will not be buying oil from Russia, saying that New Delhi has already “de-escalated” and “more or less stopped” its oil purchases from Moscow.

While speaking to the media during a bilateral lunch with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Friday (October 17, 2025), Mr. Trump said, “India will not be buying oil from Russia, they have already de-escalated and they have more or less stopped.” “They are pulling back. They have bought about 38% of the oil, and they won’t be doing it anymore.”

India on Thursday (October 16, 2025) said it is “broad-basing and diversifying” its sourcing of energy to meet market conditions, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured him that New Delhi will stop procuring Russian crude oil.

Washington has been maintaining that India is helping Vladimir Putin to finance the war through its purchase of Russian crude oil.

The relations between New Delhi and Washington have been reeling under severe stress after Mr. Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to a whopping 50%, including a 25% additional duty for India’s purchase of Russian crude oil.

India described the U.S. action as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”.

Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has once again repeated his claims about resolving the war between India and Pakistan, adding that Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif has said, “I have saved millions of lives.”

“The Prime Minister of Pakistan said I saved millions of lives by interceding … you look at Pakistan and India as an example that would have been a bad one for two nuclear nations,” the U.S. President said.

Since May 10, when Mr. Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after a “long night” of talks mediated by Washington, he has repeated his claim dozens of times that he “helped settle” the conflict between India and Pakistan.

India has consistently maintained that the understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two militaries.

India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians.

India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday (September 7, 2025) he is ready to move to a second phase of sanctioning Russia, the closest he has come to suggesting he is on the verge of ramping up sanctions against Moscow or its oil buyers over the war in Ukraine.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly threatened Moscow with further sanctions but withheld them as he pursued peace talks.

The latest comments suggest an increasingly aggressive posture, but Mr. Trump stopped short of saying he was committed to such a decision or what a second phase might entail.

Asked by a reporter at the White House if he is ready to move to “the second phase” of sanctions against Russia, Mr. Trump responded, “Yeah, I am.” He did not elaborate.

Mr. Trump has been frustrated by his inability to bring a halt to the fighting after he initially predicted he would be able to end the war in Ukraine swiftly when he took office in January.

The White House did not immediately respond to an email on Sunday (September 7, 2025) seeking comment about what steps Mr. Trump was contemplating. The exchange was a follow-up to Mr. Trump’s comments on Wednesday (September 3, 2025), defending the actions he had taken already on Russia, including imposing punitive tariffs on India’s U.S.-bound exports last month.

India is a major buyer of Russia’s energy exports, while Western buyers have cut back in response to the war.

“That cost hundreds of billions of dollars to Russia,” Mr. Trump said on Wednesday (September 3, 2025). “You call that no action? And I haven’t done phase two yet or phase three.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday (September 7, 2025) that the U.S. and the European Union could heap “secondary tariffs on the countries that buy Russian oil,” pushing the Russian economy to the brink of collapse and bringing Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.

China is a major buyer of Russian energy exports.