HSN Chapter 27 (Mineral fuels & oils) import/export evaluated product-wise against the price
benchmarks that drive Indian pricing — and mapped to OilPrice API coverage. Trade in US$; FY2018-19 → 2025-26.
India Mineral-Oil Trade × Pricing Dashboard
Trade: DGCI&S / TRADESTAT (HSN 2-digit)
Product split & prices: PPAC Ready Reckoner
Pricing formula: Rangarajan 2006 · Expert Group 2013 · TERI
Gas: Kirit Parikh 2023
✓ Consistency checks 20/20 passed
$203.4B
Ch.27 imports FY25-26 (26.2% of all imports)
$55.9B
Ch.27 exports FY25-26
121.1 MMT
Crude imported (FY25-26 H1)
4 / 11
POL items with an OilPrice benchmark (2 partial, 5 none)
80 : 20
Trade Parity Price = IPP : EPP weight
🟢 Live EIA spot benchmark
Pulled live from the EIA API — replaces the dead OilPrice feed. US Gulf Coast + crude benchmarks; directional proxy, not India FOB / Platts AG.
Updated 7 November 2026. First-half FY2026-27 figures: India imported 122.7 million tonnes of crude in April–September 2026 and paid $90.6 billion for it, up about 46% on the same months of 2025, as the Indian basket averaged $116.09 a barrel in September against $69.61 a year earlier (ThePrint, citing PPAC). The same report puts April–September 2025 at 121.8 million tonnes, against the 121.1 shown below, which reflects later revisions. The FY2025-26 trade figures in this dashboard are unchanged.
Updated 18 October 2026. The pricing checklist below describes the export levy on diesel, petrol and jet fuel as “imposed 2022, rescinded Dec-2024” and able to return. It had already returned when this dashboard was published. Press reports say a special additional excise duty on diesel and ATF exports was imposed from 26 March 2026 during the West Asia crisis, extended to petrol exports from 16 May 2026, and revised roughly every fortnight since (ETV Bharat, Angel One, Outlook Business), with exports to some neighbouring countries and from export-oriented refineries reported exempt. Reported rates differ between sources and change often, so none is quoted here; check the latest Finance Ministry notification before using one. The original text below is unchanged.
1 · HSN Chapter 27 — the mineral-oil trade balance
Exports vs imports (US$ Billion)
Chapter 27 is India's single largest import chapter and a major export earner. Structural net importer.
Chapter 27 share of total imports
Share tracks the crude price cycle — peaks in FY22-23 (oil spike), eases as prices soften.
2 · Product-level POL trade (PPAC) — where petrol, diesel, LPG & lube sit
Import vs export value by product
India imports crude & LPG (deficit products) and exports refined petrol/diesel/naphtha/ATF — the classic refining-hub pattern. Pick a year.
Import value US$BExport value US$B
3 · Trade values vs price benchmark — the bridge
Crude: realized import unit-value vs Indian basket
Implied $/bbl from trade value÷quantity tracks the Indian basket within ±6% every year — the core consistency check.
Product unit values (US$/tonne)
Import vs export realized unit value. Divergence = grade/quality & timing vs the Platts benchmark. Pick a product.
4 · The pricing formula — how commodities set Indian prices
Refinery Gate Price of sensitive products (MS, HSD), since 2006:
TPP = 0.80 × IPP + 0.20 × EPP| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| IPP | FOB price + Ocean freight + Insurance + Customs duty + Port charges (what an importer pays at an Indian port) |
| EPP | FOB price + Advance-license benefit + … (≈ FOB export realisation) |
| Retail | RGP/RTP + Inland freight & delivery + Marketing cost & margin + Dealer commission + Excise + VAT |
FOB = daily Platts (Argus for kero) Arab-Gulf product quotes, prior-fortnight/month average + premium.
| Product | Benchmark commodity that sets the price |
|---|---|
| Crude | Indian basket — 78.71% Oman+Dubai (sour) + 21.29% Brent |
| Petrol (MS) | FOB Gasoline Arab Gulf / Singapore (Platts) |
| Diesel (HSD) | FOB Gasoil 0.05%S Arab Gulf (Platts) |
| ATF / Kerosene | FOB Jet/Kero Arab Gulf (Platts/Argus) |
| LPG | Saudi Aramco CP — Butane 60% + Propane 40% + Platts Gaswire premium |
| Fuel Oil | FOB Fuel Oil 180/380 cSt Arab Gulf/Singapore (Platts) |
Worked examples from primary price-build-up documents.
PDS Kerosene, Mumbai (Mar-16): FOB AG Jet/Kero $40.26/bbl → IPP ₹18.10/L → total cost ₹20.13/L → RSP ₹15.24/L (under-recovery ₹4.89/L).
· Domestic LPG, Delhi (Mar-16): FOB AG LPG $305.95/MT → IPP ₹326.40/cyl → market ₹513.50/cyl → subsidised effective ₹419.13/cyl.
· Gas (Kirit Parikh 2023): APM gas sloped to the same Indian crude basket, floor $4 / ceiling $6.5 per MMBtu (+$0.5/yr), difficult fields cap $12.46 — one crude commodity anchors crude, LPG, MS, HSD and gas.
5 · HSN item → India benchmark → OilPrice API coverage
Which mineral-oil lines the OilPrice API can actually price
The API (this plan) has crude, gasoline, diesel, jet & marine fuels — but no LPG, naphtha, base-oil/lube, bitumen or petcoke, and no history (spot only). So it proxies ~half the complex; the Platts/Saudi-CP benchmarks in column 3 are the real anchors.
| Product | HSN | India pricing benchmark | OilPrice proxy | Coverage |
|---|
6 · Commodity-import pricing checklist (India, current rules)
How to price a commodity import into India — step by step
The landed-cost stack a trader must build before quoting. Duty rates change by notification — verify on CBIC/ICEGATE before costing a real cargo.
| Step | What to do |
|---|
Worked duty stack — Base oil (HSN 2710 1971), CIF ₹100
BCD 5% = ₹5.00 · AIDC 5% on CIF = ₹5.00 · SWS 10% on (BCD+AIDC) = ₹1.00 · IGST 18% on (CIF+duties) = ₹19.98 →
BCD 5% = ₹5.00 · AIDC 5% on CIF = ₹5.00 · SWS 10% on (BCD+AIDC) = ₹1.00 · IGST 18% on (CIF+duties) = ₹19.98 →
Effective 30.98%. FTA origin: Japan 0% BCD · UAE 2% · Australia 1% → materially lower.GST split matters. Base oil, LPG, lubricants, naphtha, bitumen, petcoke sit inside GST (IGST 18% on import). Crude, petrol, diesel, ATF & natural gas are outside GST — Central Excise + State VAT/CST apply instead, and their refinery-gate price is set by the Trade Parity formula, not a simple duty add-on.
7 · Segment picker — where the import/export margin is
Profitable segments (PPAC FY2024-25 values + TRADESTAT orientation)
India's refining-hub signature: export refined MS/HSD/ATF/naphtha; import crude, LPG, base oil, petcoke, bitumen. The value-add play is importing base oil to export finished lubricants.
| Segment | Export $B | Import $B | Orientation | Trader verdict | Key risk |
|---|
Export-surplus segments = sell India's refined output
Import-deficit segments = source/distribute or import-substitute
8 · Country-wise mineral-oil trade (top partners)
Chapter 27 by partner — imports vs exports (US$B)
Russia dominates the import bill (discounted crude); UAE & USA are two-way; China is where India sells refined product. FY2025-26.
What each relationship is
| Partner | Import $B | Export $B | Role in the mineral-oil trade |
|---|
9 · Opportunity — UCO import → SAF export to the UK
The value-add feedstock arbitrage
Not plain UCO import for domestic use (India is a discount market) — the margin is in converting feedstock to certified SAF for the UK/EU mandate premium.
UK SAF Mandate
Price signal
The play
| What has to hold |
|---|
Verdict.
10 · Net-export commodities → where to sell them
India's petroleum-product export destinations
Europe leads (Netherlands ≈25% of the total); Africa is now the largest & fastest-growing regional buyer. US$B, Apr-2023→Jan-2024.
Net-export products & target markets
The four products where India is structurally long — and the countries the surplus can move to.
| Product | Net $B | Best targets |
|---|
Target-country detail
| Product (HSN) | Where it can go | Read |
|---|
11 · Export margin ranking (implied crack over crude, 8-digit HS)
Margin per tonne — export unit value − crude cost (FY25-26)
Computed from 8-digit TRADESTAT value + quantity files (crude ≈$519/t). Bar = crack $/t; ATF & specialty oils out-margin diesel per tonne, but diesel's volume wins the pool.
Ranked table — margin quality & total pool
Per-tonne crack = margin quality; pool ($/t × volume) = total earnings. Ranked by crack/tonne.
| # | HS-8 / line | Crack $/t | % | Pool $M |
|---|
12 · Trader destination playbook — buy ex-refinery, sell abroad
Where each product fetches the best netback
| Buy (product) | Best sell-to destinations | Why / how | Avoid / watch |
|---|
Shortlist.
13 · Trade opportunity matrix — both directions, by Indian port
Good trades: export India's surplus & source India's deficit
EXPORT direction (sell surplus — refining margin)IMPORT direction (source deficit — volume)
| Export · product (HS) | Size | Sell to | Indian ports | Trade angle | Risk |
|---|
| Import · product (HS) | Size | Source from | Indian ports | Trade angle | Risk |
|---|
14 · Movement & margin-realisation check (2025-26 market data)
Are the high-margin products actually moving to these destinations?
| Destination | Flow | Recent movement (confirmed) |
|---|
Realised margin vs the estimate
| Product | Dashboard estimate | Recent market (2025-26) | Verdict |
|---|
15 · 8-digit HS net-trade leaders (verified TRADESTAT)
Top net-EXPORT lines (US$M, FY25-26)
Straight from the TRADESTAT EIDB 8-digit workbook. Diesel, petrol & ATF dominate. 8-digit Ch.27 sums reconcile to the 2-digit totals at 0.00%.
| HS-8 | Commodity | Net $M | Exp growth |
|---|
Top net-IMPORT lines (US$M, FY25-26)
Crude ($134.7B) dwarfs all; then LNG, coal, LPG (propane+butane ≈$13B) and base oil ($2.6B — matches PPAC).
| HS-8 | Commodity | Net $M |
|---|
16 · Beyond petroleum — high-value export segments & import-vs-export price
Other high-value export segments (TRADESTAT 8-digit)
| Segment | Export $M | Net $M | Unit value | Growth | Read |
|---|
Value-add: export price > import price
Buy the cheaper input grade, export the higher-value good. Ratio = export unit price ÷ import unit price.
| HS · good | Imp/u | Exp/u | × | Read |
|---|
Import-premium: import price > export price
India imports the dear/branded grade, exports the commodity — not a value-add export.
| HS · good | Imp/u | Exp/u | × | Read |
|---|
Verdict.
17 · Online trade ideas — validated against the data
Cross-checking published export/import-substitution ideas vs TRADESTAT 8-digit
Ideas from DHL/TradeBrains/FIEO (exports) & the govt 500-item import-substitution list, each tested against actual FY25-26 net trade. Some confirm, some get debunked.
| Direction | Idea | Exp $M | Imp $M | Net $M | Grw% | Verdict |
|---|
18 · Import-substitution target list (all sectors)
By sector — substitutable net import (US$M, FY25-26)
All net-import sectors India could substitute or supply into (crude/gold/coal excluded as structural). Trader column = commodity you can physically source vs a manufacturing build.
| Sector | Net import $M | Trader-tradeable? |
|---|
Structural (not substitutable — India lacks the resource)
Biggest deficits that import-substitution can't fix — for context.
| HS · good | Net import $M |
|---|
Top 40 import-substitution targets — 8-digit lines
Ranked by net import. Category tags the play: chemical/commodity & agri/raw & metal/scrap = physically tradeable (supply into India); hi-tech/mfg = domestic-manufacturing/PLI play.
| HS | Product | Net import $M | Imp growth | Category |
|---|
19 · Data consistency log
| Check | Result | Detail |
|---|
Sources. Trade: DGCI&S / TRADESTAT commodity-wise export & import (HSN 2-digit, US$M), india-trade-data-analysis.
Product split, crude basket & realized $/bbl: PPAC Ready Reckoner FY2025-26 H1, ppac-ready-reckoner-data.
Pricing methodology: Rangarajan Committee (Feb 2006), Expert Group on Pricing (Oct 2013), TERI "Petroleum pricing in India", PPAC price build-ups.
Gas: Kirit Parikh Committee (2023).
Update of 7 November 2026: April–September 2026 crude imports and bill, ThePrint (citing PPAC).
Caveats. (1) HSN data is 2-digit — Chapter 27 aggregates coal/LNG/electricity alongside petroleum, so the product split comes from PPAC, not the HSN file. (2) The OilPrice API on this plan returns no historical series (tested: Brent 1-yr & 1-mo both denied) and live spot was down during this build — the historical price backbone here is the repo/PPAC data; OilPrice can add only a current spot anchor once reachable. (3) OilPrice benchmarks are global proxies, not the exact Platts FOB-Arab-Gulf assessments used in Indian pricing. (4) FY2025-26 provisional; H1 columns are half-year.
Caveats. (1) HSN data is 2-digit — Chapter 27 aggregates coal/LNG/electricity alongside petroleum, so the product split comes from PPAC, not the HSN file. (2) The OilPrice API on this plan returns no historical series (tested: Brent 1-yr & 1-mo both denied) and live spot was down during this build — the historical price backbone here is the repo/PPAC data; OilPrice can add only a current spot anchor once reachable. (3) OilPrice benchmarks are global proxies, not the exact Platts FOB-Arab-Gulf assessments used in Indian pricing. (4) FY2025-26 provisional; H1 columns are half-year.
This dashboard covers the trade and duty picture for base oil and other Chapter 27 mineral-oil lines. The demand side of that picture — what happens to base oil once it becomes lubricant, gets used, and needs replacing — is covered separately in this blog's piece on India's used-oil EPR regime, including PPAC's own LOBS/Lube oil import-export numbers and the 2024-2030 recycling target ramp now in force.
What would fix this
- DGCI&S should publish Chapter 27 trade sub-totals for petroleum, coal, LNG and electricity in its standard commodity-wise release, so the US$203.4 billion import figure can be split by fuel without falling back on PPAC's product data, as this dashboard had to.
- PPAC should publish the fortnightly benchmark averages and resulting import-parity, export-parity and trade-parity prices used to build refinery-gate prices for petrol and diesel, so the 80:20 formula can be checked without paid access to Platts Arab Gulf assessments.
- PPAC should publish a monthly machine-readable series of realised import and export unit values for crude and each major petroleum product, so comparisons like crude's unit value against the Indian basket, and product-level grade divergence, can be tracked over time rather than in half-year snapshots.
- CBIC should publish a consolidated effective-duty table for Chapter 27 tariff lines, showing BCD, AIDC, SWS, IGST and preferential FTA rates together, so an importer can cost a cargo like the base-oil example, at 30.98% effective, from one official source.
These are proposals from this blog, not recommendations any agency has adopted.
About this article: Researched, written and edited by Umashankar Triplicane Dwarakanathan, with AI research assistance; every figure is meant to trace to the primary source cited. See the Editorial Policy for how sourcing, AI use and corrections work.
