New figures show rate of drop in EU trade with Russia
There was a 58 per cent decline in EU exports to Russia and an 86 per cent drop in imports from Russia between the first quarter of 2022 and the third quarter of 2024, the result of EU import and export restrictions on several products because of Russia’s war on Ukraine, EU statistics agency Eurostat said on November 25.
Eurostat said that in the third quarter of 2024, both imports from and exports to Russia increased slightly, compared with the previous quarter.
As a result, the EU’s trade deficit with Russia was 0.6 billion euro, significantly below the deficit peak of 46 billion euro recorded in the second quarter of 2022, the statistics agency said.
Looking at the changes in Russia’s shares in extra-EU trade, both exports and imports dropped considerably below the levels prior to Russia’s invasion.
Russia’s share in the extra-EU exports fell from 3.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2022 to 1.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2024. Over the same period, the share of extra-EU imports from Russia fell from 9.3 per cent to 1.4 per cent.
In the third quarter of 2024, the volume of nickel imported from Russia was 72 per cent of what it had been in the first quarter of 2021 while its value had dropped to 55 per cent in the same period.
In Q3 2024, the volume of petroleum oil imported from Russia was seven per cent of what it had been in the first quarter of 2021 while its value had dropped to 10 per cent in the same period.
In Q3 2024 compared with the first quarter of 2021, the volume index for imports of fertilisers from Russia decreased by 3 pp while, due to rising prices, the value index had increased by 42 pp.
Both the value and volume of iron and steel imported from Russia in the third quarter of 2024 was around a half of what it had been in the first quarter of 2021.
The volume of liquefied natural gas imported from Russia in the third quarter of 2024 was two per cent higher than in the first quarter of 2021, Eurostat said.
(Photo: Kgbo)
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