Russia-China trade turnover soars 30% in 2021, on course to reach $200bn by 2024

The trade turnover between Russia and China from January to August 2021 has surged by 29.5%, amounting to $88.997 billion.

According to data published by China’s customs service, the country’s exports to Russia in the reporting period increased by 31.6% and amounted to $40.804 billion. Imports of Russian goods and services also rose by 27.8%, to some $48.193 billion. In August alone, the volume of trade between the two states amounted to $13.363 billion.

Both Russian and Chinese authorities have been set on increasing bilateral trade volume. In June of this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that given the fact the two countries were able to maintain trade turnover at $100 billion even in pandemic-plagued 2020, they were fully capable of reaching $200 billion by 2024.

China also voiced intentions to boost bilateral trade earlier this year, with the Ministry of Commerce announcing that the country will step up expanding economic contacts with Russia on both the central and interregional levels. For instance, at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Russia's Vladivostok last week China’s ambassador to Russia, Zhang Hanhui, said Beijing is planning to boost trade and economic partnership with Russia’s Far East regions.

“We are ready to work with the Russian Federation for expansion of cooperation on the whole territory of the Far East, to contribute to the recovery of the region’s economy, its sustainable development, and recovery after the pandemic,” the envoy stated.

China’s overall external trade in the first eight months of this year grew 34.2% year-on-year to $3.827 trillion. The country’s total January-August exports grew by 33.7%, to $2.095 trillion, while imports rose 34.8% to $1.732 trillion.

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