UAE to Quit OPEC But Oil Prices Set to Remain High; West Bengal Will Finish Voting April 29, Exit Poll Predictions to Run in Evening; Thank You, Raghav Chadha
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April 28, 2026
Siddharth Varadarajan
The United Arab Emirates has announced that it is quitting OPEC, the global cartel of oil producers. Since the cartel fixes production quotas for members as a way of keeping oil prices up, UAE’s exit could lead to some softening of oil prices at a time when crude is trading at a high. While that may sound like good news for oil importers like India, the Emirates’ decision will also likely lead to greater instability and volatility in the world oil market, which is not such good news.
As the West Asian crisis triggered by the US-Israeli attack on Iran enters its third month, the World Bank said that energy prices could jump by 24% in 2026 – reaching their highest level since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago – even if the most severe disruptions from the war ease by May. In its latest Commodity Markets Outlook, the bank warned that prices could climb even higher if hostilities escalate or supply disruptions persist longer than expected. [See below for how airlines are warning of ‘potential shutdowns’ over rising fuel costs]
The Indian rupee fell to a near one-month low on Tuesday, pressured by high oil prices and importer hedging, underscoring concerns for India as a major crude importer. The rupee touched a low of 94.54 per dollar during the trading session, its weakest level since March 30, before closing at 94.19, down 0.4% on the day.
At the same time, India is battling a severe heatwave across parts of the northwest and central regions, where at least six heat-related deaths have been reported in Odisha and West Bengal, alongside rising heatstroke cases in Maharashtra. Bloomberg notes that extreme heat and below-normal rainfall could further stoke inflation, adding fresh economic strain as policymakers confront mounting energy costs and climate-linked disruptions.
Delhi high court Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma has recused herself from hearing Congress MP Karti Chidambaram’s plea to quash the CBI’s corruption case against him in the Diageo Scotland bribery matter. She did not say why. Earlier this year too, the judge recused herself from hearing Chidambaram’s plea challenging a trial court order in an alleged Chinese visa scam case. Her recusal comes against the backdrop of her refusal to do so in the Delhi liquor policy case as sought by former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, who has accused her of bias.
As the rest of West Bengal votes tomorrow to conclude a deeply contentious election, the process has become a nightmare for lakhs on the margins who have been forced to prove their homeland [See Watch Out]. The appellate tribunals set up to hear pleas by those left out of Bengal’s voter rolls even by the judicial officer-led adjudication process have cleared just 1,468 names for
