Russia’s April-June current account surplus tops $70.1 bn despite sanctions

While overall exports from the country dipped, imports saw a steeper decline during the quarter.

Exports dipped to $153.1 billion from $166.4 billion in the first quarter, but imports saw a steeper decline, falling to $72.3 billion from $88.7 billion. 

For the first six months of the year, the current account surplus has reached $138.5 billion, the central bank said.

As western nations imposed sanctions on Russia in a move to isolate the Russian economy from the global financial network amid the war in Ukraine, both imports into the country and exports from the country are down. However, soaring commodity prices, especially energy prices, saved Moscow from financial stress.

However, Russia cannot bank on commodity prices alone to sustain its economy over the long term without disrupting the the basic structure of the economy. 

High crude prices lifted Russia’s export revenues by 50 per cent in May, taking the country’s earnings from oil sales to around $20 billion per month since May this year. 

Russia, however, imposed strict capital controls, which made the rouble the top performing currency against the dollar, even though it had plunged to less than a penny at the start of the war in Ukraine.