Russia is now sending nearly 90% of its oil to Asia as EU sanctions divert crude flows

Russia is now sending nearly 90% of its oil to Asia as EU sanctions divert crude flows

With the new embargo in place, European nations are importing dramatically fewer barrels of Russian oil while Asia is getting the lion's share of the diverted crude flows. European nations took in approximately half of Russia's crude supplies before the war in Ukraine began, but that's all but halted, with the exception of a small volume of imports to Bulgaria. Russia is diverting most of that crude to Asia, with 89% of all Russian shipments — about 3 million barrels a day — heading there in the week ending December 9, according to . More than half of the crude loaded from Russian ports are heading for the Suez Canal on ships that aren't marked with a final destination, and it remains unclear whether this oil has been sold yet, or if the tankers are being sent out on hopes they'll secure a buyer before arrival. China, India, and Turkey have seen a large uptick in Russian crude imports this year, and have emerged as the biggest buyers amid the latest EU sanctions. The volume of oil heading to those three nations, in addition to the oil marked with no final destination, climbed in the four weeks leading up to