Europe has increased the supply of cosmetics and medicines to Russia

In June 2022, the EXPORT of industrial equipment from the European Union to RUSSIA again exceeded €1 billion. The supply of medicines also increased,which became the second largest European export to Russia

Exports of goods from EU countries to Russia partially recovered in June 2022, up 18% month-on-month to €4.45 billion (vs. €3.78 billion in May). Exports rise for the second consecutive month from an April low of €2.78bn, but remain well below their June 2021 level of €7.21bn. At that time, deliveries of European aircraft, bearings, dual-use technologies, luxury goods, etc. to Russia were not yet banned.

As follows from the Eurostat foreign trade data studied by RBC, Germany remains the largest European exporter to Russia (€1.16 billion in June, plus 5.4% against May), Italy is in second place (€532 million, plus 2.9%). Compared to April-May (€200-250 million), deliveries to Russia from Poland increased significantly - up to €395 million. Exports from the Baltic countries increased by 34% compared to the previous month, to €481 million.

In 2021, when the European Union (27 countries) was Russia's largest trading partner, its main exports to the country were in descending order: industrial equipment (Group 84 of the commodity nomenclature of foreign economic activity, $ 23 billion), land vehicles - mainly cars and auto components (group 87, $10.6 billion), pharmaceutical products ($9.5 billion), electrical and electronic equipment and its components (group 85, $9 billion), plastics and products from them ($5.2 billion), follows from the information of the database Comtrade data.

Export of industrial machinery and drugs

In March 2022, amid fears that sanctions could affect the supply of Western medicines, exports of pharmaceutical products from EU countries to Russia jumped to €853 million, temporarily bypassing the category of industrial equipment. According to the results of June, deliveries of industrial equipment from the EU increased by 21% compared to May and reached €1.12 billion. This is almost a third less than a year ago, but twice as much as in March or April. The export of medicines grew by 6% compared to the previous month and by 31.5% compared to June last year - up to €791 million, and now it is the second largest item of European export to Russia in terms of trade nomenclature groups (two digits, there are about 100 in total) .

Recently, the European authorities have published a number of clarifications that remove from the scope of sanctions the trade in agricultural products with Russia, as well as the general supply of pharmaceutical products to Russia (except when, for example, the goods are intended for military users in Russia).

As part of the European industrial equipment supplied to Russia, in June compared to May, in particular, the supply of some pumps, centrifuges, dishwashers, fire extinguishers, agricultural machinery, food and beverage preparation equipment, as well as lifting equipment, including elevators, increased , follows from Eurostat statistics.

Read on RBC Pro Pro How to convince anyone:Psychological Tricks - Fast Company Articles Pro"Tasty - and a comma": what to do with hastily created new brands Articles Pro "Mom, why are we so poor?":how to answer uncomfortable questions from children Pro Q-commerce instructions:what awaits fast delivery services Articles Pro Why the benefits of veganism are often exaggerated and why it is dangerousPro What they buy in the summer at Wildberries and who sells the most.Rating Studies Pro Who are Inverse Paranoids and Why They Succeed Articles

Cosmetics and plastic

Exports of perfumes and cosmetics from Europe grew by 38%, to €108 million (mainly make-up and skin care products), plastics and products from them - by 16%, to €234 million, optical, measuring , control, medical devices and tools - by 38%, to €268 million, electrical equipment and components - by 7%, to €187 million. However, deliveries in all these categories remain significantly lower than last year, especially electrical equipment - 3.4 times lower . In particular, in June 2021, the export of integrated circuits from Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, France to Russia amounted to about €55 million, and now it has dropped to almost zero.

Deliveries of expensive luxury goods to Russia from the EU are prohibited, including perfumes and cosmetics, but if the cost of one item does not exceed €300, the supply is allowed. 

The export of aircraft and components for them from Europe to Russia has been reset to zero since April 2022 (in 2021 it amounted to more than $3 billion), according to Eurostat data. Deliveries of cars and auto parts decreased by more than ten times in annual terms and in June 2022 amounted to only €62 million.

As the European Commission notes, in general, its sanctions restrictions on exports to Russia affected 28% of the value of goods supplied to Russia before the start of a special military operation in Ukraine. Due to sanctions, goods worth a total of €24.8 billion a year will stop coming to Russia, they say in Brussels.

In the second quarter, the value of imports of goods and services to Russia decreased by 22% compared to the same quarter a year earlier, the Bank of Russia reported at the end of July, based on calculations based on statistics from Russia's trading partners (the publication of the corresponding Russian statistics has been suspended). “The greatest contribution to the reduction of Russian imports was made by the contraction of trade with the EU, which introduced six packages of sanctions in the first half of 2022,” the Central Bank pointed out.

At the same time, imports will gradually recover, the Central Bank wrote on August 12 in a draft of the main directions of monetary policy. “The pace of this recovery will be determined by the emergence of new financing and insurance mechanisms, the building of new logistics routes and the formation of new trade ties. The parallel import mechanism launched since the end of March will also contribute to the growth of imports,” the regulator said. RBC has already reported a significant increase in the supply of goods to Russia compared to the levels of a year ago from Turkey and  CHINA .