India may settle Iran oil imports in Dirham, Yen, Asharq says

Bloomberg: India may pay for its oil imports from Iran in yen or the United Arab Emirates’ dirham to avoid straining its relations with the U.S. and the European Union, Asharq al-Awsat said today, citing an Indian official.

Bloomberg

By Maher Chmaytelli

India may pay for its oil imports from Iran in yen or the United Arab Emirates’ dirham to avoid straining its relations with the U.S. and the European Union, Asharq al-Awsat said today, citing an Indian official.

Iran and India are looking at options like settling their trade in other currencies than the euro or the dollar or by transferring payments to a bank account in China or Japan, said the newspaper, citing an unidentified Indian official who is taking part in talks between the two countries.

The Indian central bank on Dec. 27 asked companies to stop using the Asian Clearing Union mechanism for their trade with Iran, effectively stopping settlements in dollars and euros.

The Asian Clearing Union, based in the Iranian capital Tehran, settles trade transactions from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Maldives, Myanmar and Sri Lanka.