Russia’s foreign trade turnover may surpass pre-pandemic level – Federal Customs Service

The volume of Russia’s foreign trade turnover from the start of 2021 amounted to $570 billion, data from the Federal Customs Service (FCS) shows. The department says the indicator may exceed the level of 2019 by year’s end.

“Now our trade turnover has already amounted to about $570 billion, as of mid-October. Almost the same as in [all of] 2020,” Ruslan Davydov, first deputy head of the FCS, told Rossiya-24 TV channel on Friday.

According to the official, in the absence of global shocks, Russia will soon exceed the level of its trade turnover from pre-pandemic 2019.

“Trade turnover will probably be the largest since 2014,” Davydov stated.

He also added that by mid-October his customs department had transferred nearly 5.1 trillion rubles ($72.5 billion) to the country’s budget, with the growth propelled by a favorable situation in the foreign trade market.

“We have a very good growth in import payments. People began to buy more, they began to buy more expensive goods on which a duty is paid,” Davydov explained.

Earlier reports from the FCS said Russia’s foreign trade turnover had grown by 12% this year compared to 2019 and was expected to reach $720 billion by year’s end.

Analysis from statistics agency Eurostat also showed substantial growth in trade turnover between Russia and EU countries. In early September, the agency reported a 25.8% increase in the indicator in the first six months of 2021, which made Russia the EU’s third-largest exporter.

For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section