Russia: Merchandise exports fall at a milder rate in September
Merchandise exports fell 14.1% year-on-year in September (August: -32.5% year-on-year). September’s result marked the softest fall since January 2020. Meanwhile, merchandise imports declined 2.7% over the same month last year in September (August: -9.3% yoy), marking the best result since March 2020. The improvement reflected gradually recovering foreign demand amid the easing of lockdown restrictions globally.
As a result, the merchandise trade balance deteriorated, recording a USD 10.1 billion surplus in September (September 2019: USD 14.5 surplus; August 2020: USD 3.2 billion surplus). Lastly, the trend deteriorated, with the 12-month trailing merchandise trade balance recording a USD 108.5 billion surplus in September, compared to the USD 112.9 billion surplus in August.