India imported 21.02 million tons of crude last month, the highest number in at least seven years and a 10.5-percent increase from October 2017, data from the oil ministry cited by Reuters revealed. The increase followed the end of maintenance season at many refineries, with demand for fuels still healthy despite rising prices at the pump that the government had to step in and cap to stop a rising tide of resentment among the population. Now is also a seasonally high-demand time as festive season approaches. Imports from Africa in particular hit a three-year high last month, while shipments from Iran fell by 12 percent to 466,000 bpd. Overall, however, crude oil shipments from Iran to India rose by 34 percent between April and October. India’s crude oil imports from Africa jumped on the back of refiners who rushed to secure more African barrels amid uncertainties over the U.S. […]