Russia's economy increasingly isolated from the world
12:09
Russia's high trade surplus does not signify the strength of its economy, but on the contrary, a progressive collapse. It shows that while Russia has found opportunities to sell its fossil fuels outside Europe, its imports have collapsed. It also proves that Western sanctions – step by step – are working, the analysts at Brussels-based Bruegel Institute wrote.
Russia's trade surplus with 34 countries grew by $60.1 billion in H1 2022. The share of fuels accounted for $29.4 billion of it, while $30.7 billion was accounted for by the surplus in trade in other goods. Almost half of this was due to a decline in sales by the 34 countries of machinery and transportation equipment to Russia.
"This is likely to undermine Russia's ability to produce advanced technological products, including military equipment," analysts said.
The extent to which Russian imports have fallen is further demonstrated by the fact that since March of this year there has also been a decline in exports from Russia, down more than $5 billion in May and June of this year compared to March, a drop of more than 10 percent. While fuel exports have declined little, exports of other goods have shrunk significantly, which also confirms the effect of the sanctions.
(Interia)
