Balance of payments remained stable in 4M24

RUSSIA ECONOMICS - In Brief 17 May 2024 by Evgeny Gavrilenkov

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The CBR reported that the 4M24 current account surplus climbed to $31.7 bln after it reached $6.6 bln in April alone. As the statistical data for the previous month, published earlier, were revised upward, the surplus appeared a bit wider than expected. Overall, the 4M24 current account surplus exceeds that of 4M23 by a factor of two. The trade surplus also widened in 4M24 relative to 3M23 but not as much as the current account. Interestingly, exports in 4M24 were lower than in 4M24 ($133.6 bln versus $136.7 bln), while imports contracted more (to $89.9 bln compared to $99.5 bln). What also helped the current account to widen was a narrower deficit of the services account ($6.5 bln versus $10.1 bln) and the narrowed income balance deficit. The latter nearly halved in 4M24 compared to 4M23, falling to $5.5 bln from $11.5 bln. It looks as though Russia’s decoupling from the West steadily continues, and various restrictions on foreign trade and financial interactions with Russia imposed by the Western governments are helping to keep Russia’s balance of payments stable while the latter is trying to develop relations with alternative trade and business partners.