The value of Russian exports to European countries from January to August 2021 reached $109.7 billion, allowing Russia to remain the third largest EU exporter, European statistics agency Eurostat announced this week.
The volume of Russian exports in the reporting period increased by 48.7% compared to the same period in 2020, to $73.7 billion.
Also on rt.com Gazprom raises forecast for gas export prices by over 10% in 2021Europe’s top two exporters are China with $331.6 billion worth of exports, and the United States with $169.1 billion. The volume of European exports to Russia also surged in the first eight months of 2021, rising by 13.6% to $66.8 billion.
The EU’s largest importers from January to August 2021 were the US with $296.7 billion, the UK with $211 billion, China with $170.8 billion, and Switzerland with $118.2 billion.
The EU’s total value of exports to states outside the bloc amounted to $1.6 trillion in the reporting period, a 13.8% increase year on year. The volume of EU imports rose by 16.7% to €1.31 trillion.
Also on rt.com Russian ruble climbs to highest against US dollar since July 2020Russian exports to the bloc continue to rise despite the sanctions, which were imposed in 2014 and expanded several times since. Over this period, the EU suspended negotiations on a visa-free regime with Russia, and stalled a new basic cooperation agreement. Brussels also banned a number of Russian officials from entering EU countries and froze their assets.
In response to these measures, Russia placed restrictions on imports of a number of food products from EU countries. The measures have drawn criticism from citizens and companies both in Russia and the EU, and sparked a wave of protests among European farmers.
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