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India’s trade with Russia and Sri Lanka to reach $8-9 bln in two coming months — newspaper

"The rupee-denominated sales will be a big, big advantage," Commerce Secretary B. Subrahmanyam said

NEW DELHI, August 4. /TASS/. The total volume of India’s trade with Russia and Sri Lanka can reach $8-9 bln in two coming months owing to the Indian’s regulator permit to make settlements in the rupee, Commerce Secretary B. Subrahmanyam told reporters on Tuesday, cited by the Times of India.

"The rupee-denominated sales will be a big, big advantage," the official said. ""I see in the next two months $8-$9 billion of trade with Russia and Sri Lanka," Subrahmanyam said, without detailing the trade brake down for each country.

The Reserve Bank of India last month allowed rupee payments in foreign trade, which will facilitate trade transactions with partners in Russia and South Asian nations, the newspaper said.

"India's imports from Russia, mainly crude oil, jumped nearly five times to $15 billion between the end of July and February 24," the Times of India said. At the same time, exports declined over that period from $1.34 billion to $852.22 million due to the lack of the payment mechanism with Russia hit by sanctions, the newspaper added.