Gulf crude regains ground in India’s oil imports

“We will buy from whoever offers us better prices.”

— An Indian refining source, quoted by Reuters, 22 October 2026.

India’s oil purchases are shifting back towards the Gulf, while coal deliveries face pressure at home. This morning’s brief also tracks GST’s next implementation steps, a longer sugar-import window and the reorganisation of elected local government in Ladakh.

Gulf crude regains ground in India’s import mix

Middle Eastern oil accounted for about 54% of India’s crude imports in September, up from 32% in August, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing ship-tracking data.

Shipments from the region reached roughly 2.8 million barrels a day, their highest since February. Refiners bought more cargoes as shipments through the Strait of Hormuz recovered from disruption associated with the Iran war.

Russian deliveries fell about 14% from August to around 1.8 million barrels a day. Russia nevertheless remained India’s largest individual supplier; the Gulf figures combine several countries.

The shift is a snapshot of September purchasing, rather than a commitment about future supplies. Reuters’ refining source said Russian and some Middle Eastern grades were becoming comparable in landed cost, with shorter voyages also favouring Gulf purchases.

Coal deliveries rise as plant inventories tighten

A senior power ministry official told Reuters that coal supplies to generating stations were expected to normalise soon, with daily deliveries reaching a record 2.6 million tonnes.

The assurance followed a deterioration in inventories. Reuters cited Central Electricity Authority data showing 96 plants with critically low stocks on 19 October, compared with 60 in mid-September. Its report described those stocks as sufficient for less than three days’ generation.

Scattered rainfall in mining areas disrupted deliveries. The official also pointed to pressure from reduced hydropower and higher electricity demand.

The official said Gujarat had no power or coal shortage, after Reuters reported requests for factories to curb evening consumption. State authorities declined to comment. The competing accounts make sustained improvement in plant inventories a more useful test than an assurance alone.

GST draft returns enter consultation next month

Draft GST return forms will be published on myGov on 1 November, with comments invited until 30 November, CBIC official Gaurav Singh said on Thursday, according to The Indian Express.

The changes aim to reduce discrepancies between invoice-level sales statements and summary returns. Singh said officials were modifying GSTR-1 and improving the Invoice Management System to reduce the need for subsequent corrections.

This is a staged rollout. The report said administrative changes, including simpler registration and faster refunds, were the first priority; revised returns were due from April next year.

The government’s published explanation of the Council’s recommendations separately places the alternative correction mechanism in the April 2027 return period. It proposes aligning declared liabilities with outward-supply statements and claimed input tax credit with the credit available in GSTR-2B.

The immediate milestone is consultation. Businesses will need the final forms, rules and commencement provisions to establish precisely how their filing obligations change.

Sugar importers get until December to use the quota

India has extended the deadline for duty-free imports under its existing raw-sugar quota from 31 October to 31 December, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing an official notification.

The allowance remains one million tonnes, equivalent to 10 lakh tonnes. The notification reproduced by TaxGuru changes the deadline while retaining the quantity and other conditions. It does not announce an additional million tonnes of imports.

The Economic Times reported that industry participants estimated arrivals at only about three lakh tonnes of the permitted amount. Its sources attributed the limited uptake to domestic price-control measures that had reduced the commercial incentive to import.

That estimate is an industry assessment, rather than a customs tally. The extension gives traders more time to arrange shipments, but the permitted quota and actual arrivals remain different measures. Whether imports accelerate will depend on the economics of buying, shipping and processing the raw sugar within the applicable conditions.

Ladakh sets panchayat polling for 21 November

Ladakh’s State Election Commission has announced panchayat elections for 21 November, as the administration dissolved the Kargil autonomous hill council following district reorganisation.

The Indian Express reported that Kargil’s council would otherwise have completed its term in October 2028. Its functions will pass to the deputy commissioner on an interim basis until new councils are constituted.

The New Indian Express reported that the administration had notified 100 constituencies across eight hill councils. Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena described the allocation as reflecting population and geographical area. Leaders of the Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance opposed the amended framework, arguing that it curtailed council powers and strengthened administrative control.

The panchayat poll is a separate electoral process from the constitution of the hill councils. Reporting on the commission’s timetable puts the election notification on 26 October, the nomination deadline on 2 November and completion of the process by 30 November.

The immediate governance question is how quickly elected representation is restored alongside continuity in public services. A panchayat election date alone does not establish when every new hill council will take office.

Shares and the rupee finish Thursday lower

The Sensex closed on 22 October at 73,249.39, down 460.30 points, or 0.62%. The Nifty 50 fell 123.70 points, or 0.54%, to 22,687.65, according to Sharekhan’s post-market report.

The brokerage recorded a third consecutive decline for the benchmarks and a rupee close of ₹94.82 to the dollar, against ₹94.46 on Wednesday. These are Thursday’s closing figures, rather than live Friday prices.

Analysis. An importer paying dollars faces two separate cost exposures: the foreign-currency price of what it buys and the rupees required to obtain those dollars. Changes in either can affect costs, while contracts and hedges can alter the immediate impact. A daily market move therefore cannot be read directly as a change in every company’s expenses or every household’s prices.

Sources

Reuters, oil imports
https://in.marketscreener.com/news/india-s-mideast-oil-imports-return-to-pre-war-levels-in-september-ce785cd9de8ff624

Reuters, coal supplies
https://www.marketscreener.com/news/coal-supply-to-power-plants-to-normalise-soon-indian-official-says-ce785cd9df81f225

The Indian Express, GST implementation
https://indianexpress.com/article/business/economy/gst-process-reforms-draft-returns-november-1-10932684/

Government explanation, GST proposals
https://www.pib.gov.in/PressNoteDetails.aspx?ModuleId=3&NoteId=160401&id=160401&lang=2&reg=48

Reuters, sugar deadline
https://www.marketscreener.com/news/india-extends-duty-free-raw-sugar-import-deadline-to-december-31-ce785cdedd88f724

DGFT notification reproduced by TaxGuru
https://taxguru.in/dgft/duty-free-raw-sugar-import-deadline-extended-31-december-2026.html

The Economic Times, sugar imports
https://m.economictimes.com/news/economy/foreign-trade/import-window-for-duty-free-raw-sugar-extended-till-dec-31/amp_articleshow/135099520.cms

The Indian Express, Kargil council
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/ladakh-kargil-hill-council-dissolved-panchayat-polls-on-november-21-10931427/

The New Indian Express, Ladakh election timetable and responses
https://www.newindianexpress.com/india/2026/Oct/21/ladakh-to-hold-panchayat-polls-on-november-21-as-kargil-hill-council-dissolved-amid-political-deadlock

Sharekhan, Thursday market close
https://www.sharekhan.com/news/market/details/post-market-update--sensex-down-460-points,-nifty-below-22,700/74472

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