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West African crude oil exports to Asian countries are set to fall in January despite reaching a five-month high in December.

According to trading and shipping fixtures seen by Reuters on Monday, Asian refineries booked a total of 1.81 million barrels per day of Western Africa’s crude oil in January, down from 1.96 million barrels per day booked in December.

Nigeria is the largest exporter of crude oil in the West Africa region and Africa at large.

Indian refineries, led by state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), are one of the largest buyers of Western African oil exports owing to rising local demand. Indian refiners booked a total of 20 cargoes to load in January - fewer than in December, but well above the average level of West African crude exports to Asia.

In December, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) awarded a crude oil swap contract to the IOC worth about 60,000 barrels of crude per day.

"Indian refiners needed the sweet, with new capacity online," one trader told Reuters.

Declining oil prices, which have fallen by nearly 70 percent since May 2014, have helped to drive Western African oil exports to Asia.

Below are West African crude shipment details for December and January, for cargoes to Asian countries.

Western Africa crude oil cargoes
Source: Reuters

Chibuike Oguh is Financial Nigeria's Frontier Markets Analyst