REUTERS, New Delhi/Singapore

Indian refiners boosted US crude oil purchases this month, drawn by competitive prices, trade sources said, a move that could help narrow the country’s trade deficit with the United States amid tensions between the two nations.

The country’s top refiner, Indian Oil Corp, has bought 5 million barrels of US West Texas Intermediate crude for delivery in October and November via a tender, trade sources said.

This came after another state refiner Bharat Petroleum Corp purchased 2 million barrels of US WTI crude while private refiner Reliance Industries has bought 2 million barrels of WTI crude from Vitol, other sources said.

Indian refiners, along with others in Asia, stepped up purchases after the arbitrage window for US crude to Asia opened. India is also under pressure to buy more US oil after the United States doubled its tariffs on Indian imports to 50 percent, citing New Delhi’s buying of Russian oil.

European traders Gunvor and Equinor sold 2 million barrels each, while Mercuria sold 1 million barrels to IOC, the sources said.