The volume of trade turnover of Russia with African countries for eight months of 2023 increased by 43.5% compared to the same period of the previous year and amounted to $15.5 billion, according to materials that the Ministry of Economic Development was preparing for one of the events in the Federation Council.
It is noted that the main partner of Russia on the continent is Egypt. In 2022, Egypt’s supplies to Russia mainly consisted of fruits, the Egyptian Statistical Service reported. Grain and wood were the leaders in Egypt’s imports from Russia.
In 2022, the trade turnover of Russia and Africa amounted to $18 billion, President Vladimir Putin said. From this amount, Russian exports accounted for $14.8 billion, the Federation Council said. According to Putin, over 50% of Russian supplies to Africa are machinery and equipment, chemical products, and food.
Economist, associate professor of the RANEPA Sergey Khestanov draws attention to the fact that although trade turnover has grown sharply, the total share of these African countries in world GDP amounted to about 1.8% in 2022. The leader again is Egypt with an indicator of 1%.
According to the Bank of Russia, in July 2023, 12.7% of Russian exports to Africa was paid in rubles, and almost 79% was paid in “other currencies,” which mainly include the Chinese yuan. At the same time, the share of “other currencies” jumped from 39% in June 2023.