MOSCOW, July 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia's foreign trade surplus reached 59.1 billion US dollars in the first five months of 2026, increasing by 9.4 percent compared to the same period last year.
According to the data announced by the Russian Federal Customs Service on Monday, the country's total foreign trade volume increased by 8.3 percent in the January-May period compared to the same period last year, reaching 295.7 billion US dollars. In the same period, exports increased by 8.5 percent to 177.4 billion US dollars, and imports increased by 8.1 percent to 118.3 billion US dollars.
Mineral products, which constituted 54.2 percent of Russia's total exports in the said period, continued to be the backbone of its exports. Machinery, equipment and related products constituted the largest import item with a share of 48.6 percent.
Asian countries continued to be the country's most important trade partners, increasing their share in Russia's total foreign trade volume to 74.8 percent, an increase of 12.4 percent compared to the same period last year. Europe constituted 18 percent of the country's foreign trade volume, with an increase of 0.2 percent compared to the same period last year.
According to the data, trade with the countries of the American continent decreased by 5.6 percent compared to the same period last year and constituted 3.7 percent of the total foreign trade volume. The share of African countries in the total trade volume decreased by 9.5 percent compared to the same period last year, reaching 3.4 percent.