Russia’s overheated economy is squeezing one of its key China trading channels
Investment in Russia’s railways is to be slashed by nearly a third, complicating trade with China, state media reported
One of Russia’s key trading channels with China is facing serious snags. That is a result of burdens stemming from Russia’s war-driven economy, which have fuelled a big slowdown in the nation’s rail industry – a vital means of trade between Moscow and Beijing.
Russia’s rail industry is in its worst slowdown since the Great Financial Crisis, with the downtrend “still going strong”, according to an analysis from the Russian research firm MMI Research.
The slowdown is driven in part by Russia’s need to ship war-related materials, which have worsened supply bottlenecks and slowed the trade of key commodities, such as coal and aluminium, the outlet reported.