Russia-China trade booming – data
The volume of trade between China and Russia has continued to grow, with both exports and imports surging at double-digit pace since the beginning of 2023, the General Administration of China Customs reports.
According to its report released on Tuesday, bilateral trade soared more than 43% in January-April compared with a year ago, to $73 billion. During that period, Chinese exports to Russia jumped 67.2% in annual terms to $33.6 billion, while imports from the country rose almost 25% to $39.4 billion.
China’s trade with Russia hit a record high in 2022, growing by nearly a third amid Western sanctions on Moscow. Bilateral trade is on track to surpass $200 billion this year, according to first-quarter results.
Official statistics show that Russia was the leader among China’s 20 largest partners in terms of trade growth in 2022. China has been competing with India as Russia’s biggest buyer of oil, and has overtaken the EU as the top importer of Russian agricultural products.
Beijing’s seaborne imports of Russian oil have been hitting record highs as refiners take advantage of discounts amid a rebound in domestic fuel demand following the lifting of Covid restrictions.
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