Over $200 billion in trade has been exchanged between two of the world’s superpowers while one of them is at war.
Cross-border business between Russia and China is skyrocketing.
Ever since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine last year, Russia has been ramping up purchases of all goods from China as the West seeks to isolate it through sanctions.
This led to a boom in China’s automotive industry as a whole, which has already topped Japan as the world’s largest vehicle exporter.
According to GlobalData Automotive, China’s car manufacturers have reaped a staggering 55 percent of the Russian market this year. Seven times that from 2021.
The benefits go both ways. From chocolate to sausages, Russian groceries are becoming increasingly present in Chinese supermarkets.
But among the most vital commodities is energy. As the world battles higher energy costs, China has been buying Russian oil and natural gas at a discount. The two countries are also building pipelines to speed up the energy transfer.
China’s exports to Russia surged nearly 70 percent since 2021 before the invasion of Ukraine.