Page 84 - RusRPTJul22

production problems in Russia.
In particular, Russian industries that rely heavily on imported components (e.g. car and home appliance manufacturers) have been struggling. The sales of new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) in Russia in May 2022 plummeted by 84% y/y.
Large drops in exports to Russia from EU countries were registered in April. For example, exports to Russia from Germany were down by 64% y/y, France (down 78%), Italy (down 48%) and Spain (down 74%).
The value of Russian exports rose throughout the spring. Crude oil prices have remained relatively high, even if the difference between the price of Russian Urals blend and North Sea Brent has widened to $20‒$30 a barrel. Russia has succeeded to some extent in redirecting its EU oil exports to countries in Asia. India and China, in particular, have increased their purchases of Russian oil.
Russia’s burgeoning current account surplus well reflects the collapse of imports and growth in the value of exports. According to preliminary figures released by the CBR, Russia posted a current account surplus in the first five months of this year of $110bn, a surplus roughly three-and-a-half times larger than the surplus posted in the same period last year. For all of 2021, Russia’s current account surplus was $122bn, the equivalent of 6.9% of GDP.
5.2 Balance of payments, current account
According to the Bank of Russia’s preliminary estimate, the current account surplus of the balance of payments of the Russian Federation in January — May 2022 continued to grow and amounted to $110.3bn, having increased almost 3.5 times compared to the corresponding period of 2021.
Key Aggregates in details:
· current account dynamics was determined by widening of surplus in the balance of goods and services as a result of significant growth in exports and a decline in imports;
· total deficit of other components of the current account increased mainly due to the fall of investment income received from non-residents;
· the financial account surplus of the balance of payments was a consequence of asset growth and a less significant decrease in liabilities.
84 RUSSIA Country Report October 2020 www.intellinews.com