MOSCOW – Moscow and Beijing have been cutting the share of the US dollar inbilateral settlements, as trade between the countries rapidly grows.
China is Russia’s largest trading partner, accounting for 15 percent ofRussian international trade last year. In January 2018, it grew to 17.2percent. Germany, which holds second place among Russia’s trade partners,has a share of about eight percent, RT has reported.
Last year, bilateral trade between Russia and China increased by 31.5percent, reaching $87 billion. This year, it is expected to reach $100billion, the Russian Economic Development Ministry told RT.
As trade grows, Russia and China are also promoting settlements in rubleand yuan, bypassing the US dollar and other Western currencies. *“It makesit possible to reduce the dependence on the influence of third countries,”* theRussian Central Bank told RT.
According to the Russian regulator, both Russian and Chinese companies arewilling to pay in ruble and renminbi, and this can be proven by realnumbers. Last year, nine percent of payments for supplies from Russia toChina were made in rubles; Russian companies paid 15 percent of Chineseimports in the renminbi. Just three years ago, the numbers were two andnine percent, respectively.
Direct payments in the ruble-yuan pair do not imply the participation ofAmerican, British, or EU banks. This significantly reduces the control ofthe West from ongoing transactions, and makes the trade turnover betweenRussia and China independent. Moreover, such payments can be made withoutSWIFT through the China International Payments System (CIPS).
The Moscow Exchange also highlights the growing interest in the ruble-yuanpair.*“Since the launch of trading of the currency pair in 2010, the totalvolume of transactions with the yuan has exceeded 2.7 trillion rubles(around $45 billion),”*spokesman for the exchange Igor Marich told RT.
Marich added that more than 170 Russian banks and brokerage companies fromdifferent regions of the country are making deals with the yuan at theMoscow Exchange. China is represented by its financial giants – the Bank ofChina, ICBC, China Construction Bank and Agricultural Bank of China. Theruble-yuan exchange rate is calculated without the participation of the USdollar, and is based on investor demand, he said.