India steps up fuel imports amid shortage; Asia's pool of supplies shrinks

Rush to import petrol and diesel has already led to a surge in regional refining margins

Global energy markets that have thrown up plenty of anomalies in 2022 as flows get rerouted and prices jump just saw a fresh quirk: India, typically Asia’s leading petrol and diesel exporter, has been forced to step up imports of the fuels.

Petrol imports are set to rise to about 37,000 barrels a day in the first half of July, an eight-month high, according to preliminary data by Vortexa Ltd. Diesel imports, meanwhile, are set to surge to the highest since February 2020 at about 69,000 barrels a day in the period. Refiners such as Indian Oil Corp and Bharat Petroleum