Russia’s total trade reached about US$745 billion during 2025, also showcasing a significant, albeit shifting, trade surplus of about US$120 billion. In this section we cover all news concerning Russian trade developments, with Russian exporters increasingly reaching out into new markets on a global basis as it pivots away from the West. This is the definitive source on Russian trade. Get the latest data, analysis, and news on Russia’s import/export activities, trade agreements, and increasing commercial partnerships with the Global South.
Russia’s sea fishing Vladmorryb Port, based in Vladivostok, is establishing a direct shipping service to China’s Rizhao Port in Shangdong Province. The new service will be operated by a container ship with a capacity for 620 TEU, carrying both containerized and refrigerated cargo.
Russia’s Pharmasyntez Group is to begin exports of drugs to Afghanistan after concluding discussions with the Afghan Ministry of Health. The company typically exports anti-tuberculosis, anti-cancer, antiretroviral medicines and hospital antibiotics. Afghanistan has a population of about 43 million.
The North Caucasus Investment Forum showcased an up and coming region of southern Russia that is creating a specific transport corridor from the Russian heartland to the Middle East and Central Asia. We deep dive the economic progress and provide a thorough analysis of developments in this enigmatic and little understood region.
The Commonwealth of Independent States has just held its annual meetings in Ashgabat, including leaders from Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Significant developments took place in unifying a practical Eurasian geoeconomic platform centered around transport integration, industrial modernization, digital governance, logistics sovereignty, strategic mineral supply chains, customs digitization, agricultural security, energy coordination, and sanctions-resistant continental trade. This article is crucial intelligence for anyone involved in the Eurasian and Central Asian trade space.
Russia’s VTB Bank is to conduct an SPO to help its acquisition of the Wildberries & Russ banking network in a significant Russian domestic play.
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Russia’s Kristall Distillery is importing and then bottling premium Mexican tequila for the domestic market. Russians are drinking less vodka and a variety of other alcohols as market tastes shift.
The Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Russia, is set to hold discussions with Tunisia over signing a negotiated Free Trade Agreement. This can be expected to replace certain Tunisia-EU trade flows as Eurasian-North African dynamics begin to align.
Bahrain is not a major energy play in the Middle East but is becoming important in grain transhipment. We look at the latest bilateral discussions between President Putin and the King of Bahrain.
Russian pharma has both generic and state of the art pharmaceuticals and is exporting these to North Korea in medicines largely attributed to dealing with an aging population as the DPRK populations begins to retain a better and longer quality of life.
Russia has ratified a bilateral free trade agreement with the UAE, making it possible for investors from either country to set up 100% owned companies in each others countries in moves especially pertiment to the services sector. With bilateral trade already over US$12 billion, the move is a strong boost to the UAE business sector during difficult times in the Middle East and is illustrative of Russian longer-term investment planning.
Russia has ratified the free trade agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union and Indonesia, paving the way for a substantial increase of the bilateral US$4.8 billion in trade but also linking fellow Muslim markets in Central Asia to Southeast Asia.
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