Russia-China Trade Dips as Global Challenges Mount

Trade turnover between Russia and China declined by 6.9% year-on-year in 2025, reaching $228.105 billion, Alexey Dakhnovsky, Russia’s Trade Representative to China, announced, citing Chinese customs data.

“The reasons for this decline are quite clear. I’ll just name a few: unprecedented external pressure from the West, falling prices for goods that form the core of Russian exports to China, high borrowing costs in Russia, slowing growth in certain sectors of the Chinese economy, and the supply of the Russian market with Chinese products. Beyond specific factors, it is also important to recognize the rapid dynamics of current changes in global politics, economics, and other areas,” Dakhnovsky said, The Caspian Post reports, citing TASS.

Despite the decline, he emphasized that Russia remains among China’s top five trading partners.

Dakhnovsky noted that Russia-China relations must be understood in context. The rapid growth in bilateral trade turnover between 2022 and 2024 was largely driven by Chinese products filling niches left in Russia after the withdrawal of Western companies. That period of accelerated growth has now ended, as objective conditions have shifted.

“Some volatility in trade is therefore inevitable. While overall indicators declined last year, we observed gradual improvement during specific months, and Russian exports to China remained consistently positive during each of the last four months,” he added.

The official highlighted that, despite multiple challenges, Russia and China have strengthened trade and economic ties and developed new formats of cooperation.

“If we assess the past year in terms of trade and economic cooperation, it is notable that, despite the significant impact of various negative factors, the countries managed to maintain stability in bilateral trade, strengthen relations, and develop new models of cooperation,” Dakhnovsky said.

He further emphasized that Russia and China have fully transitioned to using national currencies in mutual trade. Industrial and technological cooperation has also expanded, with both sides steadily increasing contacts in these sectors. A key factor in mitigating negative scenarios has been the creativity, activity, and flexibility of businesses, which facilitated the growth of joint projects and exchange intensity. Dakhnovsky particularly commended small and medium-sized companies for showing entrepreneurial courage and initiative, opening new niches and regions despite difficulties.