NEW DELHILONDON, March 8 Reuters U.S.led international sanctions on Russia have begun to erode the dollar39;s decadesold dominance of international oil trade as most deals with India Russia39;s top outlet for seaborne crude have been settled in other currencies.

The dollar39;s preeminence has periodically been called into question and yet it has continued because of the overwhelming advantages of using the most widelyaccepted currency for business.

India39;s oil trade, in response to the turmoil of sanctions and the Ukraine war, provides the strongest evidence so far of a shift into other currencies that could prove lasting.

The country is the world39;s number three importer of oil and Russia became its leading supplier after Europe shunned Moscow39;s supplies following its invasion of Ukraine begun in February last year.

After a coalition opposed to the war imposed an oil price cap on Russia on Dec. 5, Indian customers have paid for most Russian oil in nondollar currencies, including the United Arab Emirates dirham and more recently the Russian rouble, multiple oil trading and banking sources said.

The transactions in the last three months total the equivalent of several hundred million dollars, the sources added, in a shift that has not previously been reported.

The Group of Seven economies, the European Union and Australia, agreed the price cap late last year to bar Western services and shipping from trading Russian oil unless sold at an enforced low price to…