Russia: Export growth remains firm in February
Merchandise exports totaled USD 31.2 billion in February, recording a robust 20.8% expansion from the USD 25.8 billion observed in the same month of 2017. February’s growth was softer than January’s 31.3% increase, which was a multi-year high. The strong performance in February was underpinned by higher commodity prices and healthy global trade, which drove an upsurge in Russian exports in recent months.
Imports increased 22.8% year-on-year in February to come in at USD 19.0 billion, easing from January’s 20.4% increase. The trade surplus came in at USD 12.2 billion, which was well above the USD 10.3 billion surplus recorded in February 2017.
In line with February’s solid performance, the trailing 12-month sum of the trade balance rose to USD 122 billion, up from January’s USD 120.2 billion and the best reading since March 2016.