Russia exported US$422.8 billion worth of goods around the globe in 2019. That dollar amount reflects 22.9% increase since 2015 but a -5.9% drop from 2018 to 2019.



In addition, that dollar figure represents roughly 2.2% of overall global exports estimated at $19.285 trillion for one year earlier in 2018.



Officially named the Russian Federation, Russia is the world’s largest country in terms of geographic area. It shares land or maritime borders with 16 other European or Asian countries.



Applying a continental lens, 53.5% of Russia’s exports by value were delivered to fellow European countries while 38.2% were sold to importers in Asia.



Smaller percentages went to North America (3.7%), Africa (3.3%), Latin America (1.1%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean then Oceania (0.1%) led by New Zealand and Australia.

Top 15

Below is a list showcasing 15 of Russia’s top trading partners in terms of export sales, revealing which countries imported the most Russian shipments by dollar value during 2019. Also shown is each import country’s percentage consumption of total Russian exports. China: US$56.8 billion (13.4% of Russia’s total exports) Netherlands: $44.8 billion (10.6%) Germany: $28 billion (6.6%) Turkey: $21.1 billion (5s%) Belarus: $20.5 billion (4.9%) South Korea: $16.4 billion (3.9%) Italy: $14.3 billion (3.4%) Kazakhstan: $14.1 billion (3.3%) United Kingdom: $13.3 billion (3.1%) United States: $13.2 billion (3.1%) Poland: $12.4 billion (2.9%) Japan: $11.4 billion (2.7%) Finland: $10.1 billion (2.4%) India: $7.3 billion (1.7%) Belgium: $6.8 billion (1.6%) Over two-thirds (68.7%) of Russian exports in 2019 were delivered to the above 15 trade partners.



Five top trade partners increased their import purchases from Russia from 2018 to 2019: United Kingdom (up by 358%), Kazakhstan (up by 8.7%), United States (up by 5.2%), Netherlands (up by 3%) and China (up by 1.3%).



Leading the decliners were Belgium (down -26.5%), Poland (down -24.7%), Germany (down -17.7%), Italy (down -12.6%) and Finland (down -11.4%).

Deficits

As defined by Investopedia, a country whose total value of all imported goods is higher than its value of all exports is said to have a negative trade balance or deficit.



It would be unrealistic for any exporting nation to expect across-the-board positive trade balances with all its importing partners. Similarly, that export country doesn’t necessarily post a negative trade balance with each individual partner with which it exchanges exports and imports.



Russia incurred the highest trade deficits with the following countries. Vietnam: -US$2.6 billion (country-specific trade deficit in 2019) France: -$2.1 billion Ireland: -$1.2 billion Thailand: -$1.1 billion Indonesia: -$912.2 million Ecuador: -$887.7 million Chile: -$831 million Spain: -$761.5 million Paraguay: -$654.7 million Malaysia: -$605.2 million Among Russia’s trading partners that cause the greatest negative trade balances, Russian deficits with Vietnam (up 126.9%), Ireland (up 81.2%) and France (up 18.6%) grew at the fastest pace from 2018 to 2019.



These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Russia’s competitive disadvantages with the above countries, but also represent key opportunities for Russia to develop country-specific strategies to strengthen its overall position in international trade.

Surpluses

Overall Russia generated a $179 billion trade surplus during 2019, a -15.2% decline from the $211.2 billion surplus one year earlier.



Based on Investopedia’s definition of net importer, a country whose total value of all imported goods is lower than its value of all exports is said to have a positive trade balance or surplus.



Russia incurred the highest trade surpluses with the following countries: Netherlands: US$40.8 billion (country-specific trade surplus in 2019) Turkey: $16.1 billion United Kingdom: $9.2 billion Kazakhstan: $8.5 billion South Korea: $8.4 billion Belarus: $7.7 billion Poland: $7.4 billion Finland: $6.6 billion Egypt: $5.3 billion Latvia: $4.6 billion Among Russia’s trading partners that generate the greatest positive trade balances, Russian surpluses with United Kingdom (up 61.1%), Kazakhstan (up 11.2%) and Latvia (up 9.2%) grew at the fastest pace from 2018 to 2019.



These positive cashflow streams clearly indicate Russia’s competitive advantages with the above countries, but also represent key opportunities for Russia to develop country-specific strategies to optimize its overall position in international trade.

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