Reuters - India hopes the U.S. will allow its allies to continue to buy some Iranian oil instead of halting the purchases altogether from May, a source familiar with U.S.-India talks said on Monday.

The United States is expected to announce on Monday that buyers of Iranian oil need to end imports soon or face sanctions, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters, triggering a 3 percent jump in crude prices to their highest for 2019 so far.

�They (the U.S. administration) have to take care of their allies, strategic partners. Under sanctions from the beginning, there was talk of a gradual reduction and not going to zero on one stroke,� said the source, who did not wish to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue.

India, Iran�s biggest oil client after China, has almost halved its Iran oil purchase since November. That was when Washington granted significant reduction exceptions (SREs) from sanctions to countries, including India.

�Under SREs we hope they will give us relaxation and allow us to buy some Iranian oil,� the source added.

Indian refiners have not yet placed orders to lift Iranian oil in May, pending clarity on whether Washington will extend the sanctions waiver.


Reporting by Nidhi Verma; Edited by Martin Howell