Crude oil imports may be cut as price forecast put at $100 a barrel

Benchmark Brent crude oil futures surged 2% on Monday to over $80 a barrel

With oil traders forecasting crude oil to rise to $100 a barrel by the end of the year, Indian refiners are considering cutting back their imports and relying more on cheaper crude already stored in inventories, according to industry executives.

Benchmark Brent crude oil futures surged 2 per cent on Monday to over $80 a barrel as markets have tightened ahead of the start of sanctions by the United States on Iran, with commodity merchants Trafigura and Mercuria predicting $100 oil by the end of 2018.

The soaring oil prices are occurring at a time emerging market currencies, such as India's rupee,