MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th January, 2019) Over the first 10 months of 2018, the Russian trade with foreign states grew by 20 percent year-on-year, reaching $567 billion, with the countries that support anti-Russia sanctions showing the biggest trade increase, a report by the international audit and consulting network FinExpertiza revealed on Monday.
FinExpertiza said, citing the Russian Federal State Statistics Service, that 27 foreign states had experienced a significant boost in trade with Russia over the given period. According to FinExpertiza, 17 of these states have been supporting anti-Russia sanctions. In January-October 2018, Russia's trade with these countries amounted to $271.6 billion, which accounts for 48 percent of its total trade over the given period.
The Russian-Polish trade has seen the most significant increase as it grew by 37.5 percent year-on-year to $17.8 million in January-October 2018.
However, none of these 17 countries has managed to ramp its trade with Russia to the level registered in 2013, before the introduction of the anti-Russia sanctions started. Belgium was closer to this aim than any other country, with its trade with Russia reaching 99.6 percent of the pre-sanctions level. The United States comes on heels with 92.6 percent.
FinExpertiza added that it could suggest, taking into consideration the figures registered over the first 10 months of 2018, that in 2018 Russian trade with foreign states could reach $702 billion, which is 83 percent of the pre-sanctions level.
Relations between Russia and the Western states deteriorated in 2014 over Crimea's reunification with Russia, deemed illegal by certain countries, and over different stances on the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
