(Bloomberg) — Chinese imports from Russia surged to a record in April, likely due to soaring global energy prices, while exports fell to the lowest level since the early months of the pandemic.
Chinese companies bought $8.9 billion worth of goods from Russia in April, an almost 57% jump from the same month a year ago. That rise came even though total imports from the whole world were unchanged and underline the closeness of ties between the two nations.
China has refrained from sanctioning Russia even as the Group of Seven and European nations look to stop all oil purchases from Russia.
Read More: China’s Oil Imports Rise as More Russian Supply Reaches Shore
Chinese firms sold $3.8 billion worth of goods to Russia in April, slightly less than in March, official data showed Monday. That was down 7.7% from a year earlier and was the lowest amount since March 2020, when global trade was badly affected by the initial outbreak of Covid-19.
The top products China exported to Russia in March include smartphones, and processing units for microprocessors and other portable data-processing machines, according to data from the customs authority. The detailed breakdown for April will be released later this month.
(Updates with additional details in the final paragraph.)
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