Occupying Northern Asia and a large part of Eastern Europe thus making Russia the world’s biggest area by geographic area, Russia shipped US$449.3 billion worth of goods around the globe in 2018. That dollar amount for Russian exports reflects a -9.7% drop since 2014 but a 25.1% acceleration from 2017 to 2018.
From a continental perspective, 54.5% of Russian exports by value were delivered to fellow European countries while 36.8% were sold to Asian importers. Smaller percentages went to Africa (3.8%), North America (3.4%) and Latin America (1.2%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.
Given Russia’s population of 142.1 million people, its total $449.3 billion in 2018 exports translates to roughly $3,200 for every resident in the vast Eurasian country.
Russia’s Top 10 Exports
Top 10
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Russian global shipments during 2018. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Russia.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$237.6 billion (52.9% of total exports)
- Iron, steel: $23.4 billion (5.2%)
- Cereals: $10.5 billion (2.3%)
- Gems, precious metals: $10.1 billion (2.2%)
- Machinery including computers: $9.2 billion (2%)
- Wood: $9 billion (2%)
- Fertilizers: $8.2 billion (1.8%)
- Aluminum: $6.6 billion (1.5%)
- Copper: $5.4 billion (1.2%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: $4.9 billion (1.1%)
Note that the results listed above are at the categorized two-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. For a more granular view of exported goods at the four-digit HTS code level, see the section Searchable List of Russia’s Most Valuable Export Products further down near the bottom of this article.
Russia’s top 10 exports accounted for almost three-quarters (72.3%) of the overall value of its global shipments.
Cereals was the fastest-growing among the top 10 export categories up 38.9% from 2017 to 2018, led by improved international sales of wheat and barley.
In second place for improving export sales was Russian iron and steel which was up 24.5%.
Russia’s shipments of copper posted the third-fastest gain via a 14.1% gain in value.
There were two decliners among the top 10 export categories. Gems and precious metals fell -8.6% due to plummeting gold exports while retreated -1.8%.
Advantages
Overall Russia generated a $211.2 billion trade surplus during 2018, a 61.3% uptick from the $130.9 billion surplus one year earlier.
The following types of Russian product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$235.5 billion (Up by 12.2% since 2017)
- Iron, steel: $18.1 billion (Up by 29.7%)
- Cereals: $10.1 billion (Up by 41.3%)
- Gems, precious metals: $9.3 billion (Down by -10.9%)
- Wood: $8.3 billion (Up by 14.6%)
- Fertilizers: $8.1 billion (Up by 14.4%)
- Aluminum: $5.3 billion (Down by -2%)
- Copper: $4.6 billion (Up by 17.3%)
- Nickel: $2.5 billion (Up by 27.7%)
- Fish: $2.5 billion (Up by 33.6%)
Russia has highly positive net exports in the international trade of crude and refined oils, coal and petroleum gases. In turn, these cashflows indicate Russia’s strong competitive advantages under the mineral fuels including oil category.
Opportunities
Below are exports from Russia that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Russia’s goods trail Russian importer spending on foreign products.
- Machinery including computers: -US$34.4 billion (Down by -6.3% since 2017)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$25 billion (Up by 11.6%)
- Vehicles: -$20.5 billion (Up by 13.3%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$9.8 billion (Down by -3.1%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$6.6 billion (Up by 10.7%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: -$5.01 billion (Up by 16%)
- Fruits, nuts: -$4.97 billion (Up by 8.6%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): -$3.5 billion (Up by 9.7%)
- Footwear: -$3.2 billion (Up by 6.9%)
- Knit or crochet clothing, accessories: -$3.18 billion (Up by 5.3%)
Russia has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for machinery including computers.
These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Russia’s competitive disadvantages in the international machinery market, but also represent key opportunities for Russia to improve its position in the global economy through focused innovations.
Companies
Russian Export Companies
Almost 30 Russian corporations rank among Forbes Global 2000. The following companies are selected examples of leading companies headquartered in Russia:
- Gazprom (oil, gas)
- Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel (iron, steel)
- Mechel (iron, steel)
- Severstal (iron, steel)
- Sistema (telecommunications)
- Surgutneftegas (oil, gas)
Wikipedia also lists large international trade players from Russia:
- Alrosa (diversified metals)
- LukOil (oil, gas)
- Norilsk Nickel (diversified metals)
- Novatek (oil, gas)
- Novolipetsk Steel (iron, steel)
- Rosneft (oil, gas)
- Tatneft (oil, gas)
- Transneft (oil and gas equipment)
- UC Rusal (aluminum)
- Uralkali (specialized chemicals)
Searchable List of Russia’s Most Valuable Export Products
At the more granular four-digit HTS code level, Russia’s top export products are crude oil followed by refined petroleum oils then coal.
The following searchable table displays 200 of the most in-demand goods shipped from the Russian Federation during 2018. Shown beside each product label is its total export value then the percentage increase or decrease since 2017.
| Rank | Russia's Export Product | 2018 Value (US$) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Crude oil | $129 billion | +38.3% |
| 2 | Processed petroleum oils | $78.1 billion | +34.1% |
| 3 | Coal, solid fuels made from coal | $17 billion | +25.9% |
| 4 | Wheat | $8.4 billion | +45.6% |
| 5 | Iron or non-alloy steel products (semi-finished) | $8 billion | +31.9% |
| 6 | Petroleum gases | $7.5 billion | -82.7% |
| 7 | Aluminum (unwrought) | $5.3 billion | -2.1% |
| 8 | Diamonds (unmounted/unset) | $5 billion | +6.7% |
| 9 | Sawn wood | $4.5 billion | +12.9% |
| 10 | Refined copper, unwrought alloys | $4.1 billion | +13.2% |
| 11 | Platinum (unwrought) | $3.6 billion | +11% |
| 12 | Hot-rolled iron or non-alloy steel products | $3.4 billion | +12.5% |
| 13 | Fertilizer mixes | $3.4 billion | +23.8% |
| 14 | Coal tar oils (high temperature distillation) | $3.2 billion | +163% |
| 15 | Nitrogenous fertilizers | $2.8 billion | +19.2% |
| 16 | Whole fish (frozen) | $2.6 billion | +24.9% |
| 17 | Pig iron | $2.2 billion | +32.4% |
| 18 | Turbo-jets | $2.1 billion | +8.8% |
| 19 | Potassic fertilizers | $2 billion | -4.5% |
| 20 | Nickel (unwrought) | $1.7 billion | +25.3% |
| 21 | Synthetic rubber | $1.7 billion | -1.4% |
| 22 | Iron or steel scrap | $1.6 billion | +23.5% |
| 23 | Sun/safflower/cotton-seed oil | $1.6 billion | -10% |
| 24 | Iron ores, concentrates | $1.6 billion | +0.6% |
| 25 | Chemical woodpulp (non-dissolving) | $1.5 billion | +36.9% |
| 26 | Rough wood | $1.5 billion | -0.3% |
| 27 | Iron ferroalloys | $1.4 billion | +4.2% |
| 28 | Laminated wood (including plywood, veneer panels) | $1.4 billion | +22.8% |
| 29 | Cars | $1.3 billion | -2.5% |
| 30 | Iron and steel tubes, pipes | $1.3 billion | +6% |
| 31 | Rubber tires (new) | $1.2 billion | +3% |
| 32 | Acyclic hydrocarbons | $1.2 billion | +52.1% |
| 33 | Crustaceans (including lobsters) | $1.2 billion | +24.9% |
| 34 | Nuclear reactors, fuel elements | $1.1 billion | -12.1% |
| 35 | Ammonia | $1.1 billion | +56.9% |
| 36 | Iron ore reduced products | $1 billion | +55.7% |
| 37 | Copper wire | $1 billion | +15.9% |
| 38 | Barley | $1 billion | +40% |
| 39 | Iron or non-alloy steel bars, rods | $990.3 million | +37.3% |
| 40 | Iron or steel tubes, pipes | $863.5 million | +65.2% |
| 41 | Corn | $854.4 million | -3.7% |
| 42 | Electrical energy | $808.9 million | +26.4% |
| 43 | Acyclic alcohols | $794.6 million | +24.9% |
| 44 | Nickel matte, oxide sinters | $794.2 million | +29.4% |
| 45 | Cold-rolled iron or non-alloy steel products | $745.7 million | -10.5% |
| 46 | Flat-rolled iron or non-alloy steel products (plated/coated) | $727.6 million | +27.6% |
| 47 | Uncoated kraft paper | $724.7 million | +32.2% |
| 48 | Gold (unwrought) | $697.1 million | -70.4% |
| 49 | Miscellaneous carbon | $680.7 million | +46.2% |
| 50 | Coke, semi-coke | $679.2 million | +14.7% |
| 51 | Newsprint (rolls or sheets) | $653.6 million | +39.6% |
| 52 | Flat-rolled other alloy steel products | $650.5 million | +30.4% |
| 53 | Titanium | $637.6 million | +17.5% |
| 54 | Chocolate, other cocoa preparations | $632 million | +15.4% |
| 55 | Precious metal ores, concentrates | $602.5 million | +19.2% |
| 56 | Alloy steel bars, rods | $597.7 million | +22.7% |
| 57 | Coiled iron or non-alloy steel bars, rods | $589.2 million | +35% |
| 58 | Cruise/cargo ships, barges | $577.8 million | -26.5% |
| 59 | Temperature-change machines | $572.3 million | +10.5% |
| 60 | Lignite | $563 million | +43.2% |
| 61 | Automobile parts/accessories | $560.6 million | +8.2% |
| 62 | Lead ores, concentrates | $549.1 million | +5.3% |
| 63 | Cyclic hydrocarbons | $543.7 million | +34.5% |
| 64 | Heterocyclics, nucleic acids | $514.1 million | +16.6% |
| 65 | Medication mixes in dosage | $495.5 million | +8.3% |
| 66 | Phone system devices | $485.5 million | +13.9% |
| 67 | Miscellaneous iron or steel tubes, pipes | $485.3 million | +31.7% |
| 68 | Miscellaneous iron and steel structures | $484.1 million | +11.5% |
| 69 | Silver (unwrought) | $459.9 million | +8.6% |
| 70 | TV receivers/monitors/projectors | $444.2 million | +22.6% |
| 71 | Uncoated paper for writing/printing | $435.3 million | +9.7% |
| 72 | Alloy steel ingots | $431.4 million | +17.5% |
| 73 | Propylene/olefin polymers | $429.4 million | +2% |
| 74 | Special purpose vehicles | $420.8 million | -43.5% |
| 75 | Insulated wire/cable | $416.2 million | +24.1% |
| 76 | Ethylene polymers | $414 million | -12.4% |
| 77 | Soya-bean oil | $405.7 million | +3.6% |
| 78 | Iron or non-alloy steel angles, shapes, sections | $399 million | +22.7% |
| 79 | Miscellaneous engines, motors | $396.1 million | +2% |
| 80 | Fish fillets, pieces | $384.1 million | +10% |
| 81 | Liquid pumps and elevators | $379.5 million | +5.1% |
| 82 | Aluminum plates, sheets, strips | $377.1 million | +14.4% |
| 83 | Particle board, other ligneous materials | $374.1 million | +36.5% |
| 84 | Liquid crystal/laser/optical tools | $374 million | -23.7% |
| 85 | Hydrazine, inorganic salts | $373.9 million | +107.5% |
| 86 | Electric motors, generators | $372.6 million | +46.9% |
| 87 | Trucks | $370.8 million | +10.4% |
| 88 | Bread, biscuits, cakes, pastries | $369.2 million | +8.3% |
| 89 | Rape/colza/mustard oil | $361.1 million | +51.3% |
| 90 | Railway/streetcar carrier vans, wagons | $345.7 million | +38.2% |
| 91 | Other organic cleaning preparations | $344.1 million | -39.1% |
| 92 | Carbon electrodes, brushes | $342.5 million | +119.7% |
| 93 | Refrigerators, freezers | $342.3 million | +21% |
| 94 | Washing machines | $340.5 million | +5.6% |
| 95 | Wood/ligneous materials fiberboard | $340.4 million | +21.5% |
| 96 | Other measuring/testing machines | $334.7 million | +18.4% |
| 97 | Taps, valves, similar appliances | $334.1 million | +13.9% |
| 98 | Non-sublimed sulphur | $330.6 million | +49.9% |
| 99 | Dried shelled vegetables | $324.5 million | -21.1% |
| 100 | Natural calcium/aluminum phosphates | $320.2 million | -5.6% |
| 101 | Fuel wood, wood chips, sawdust | $316.8 million | +29.8% |
| 102 | Ethers | $315.4 million | +38.5% |
| 103 | Computers, optical readers | $312.4 million | +10.9% |
| 104 | Miscellaneous iron or steel items | $307.8 million | +13.4% |
| 105 | Zinc ores, concentrates | $305.5 million | +63.4% |
| 106 | Miscellaneous furniture | $303.7 million | +19.7% |
| 107 | Cigars/cigarellos, cigarettes | $301.6 million | -19.5% |
| 108 | Printed books, brochures | $297 million | +2.2% |
| 109 | Petroleum oil residues | $294.2 million | +62.1% |
| 110 | Soya beans | $292.7 million | +73.7% |
| 111 | Radar, radio communication items | $287 million | -32.3% |
| 112 | Miscellaneous oil cakes | $285.6 million | +30.1% |
| 113 | Unrecorded sound media | $272.9 million | +28.3% |
| 114 | Wood carpentry, builders' joinery | $265.6 million | +13.7% |
| 115 | Plastic plates, sheets, film, tape, strips | $255.4 million | +20.5% |
| 116 | Electrical machinery | $253.8 million | -7.9% |
| 117 | Uncoated paper | $252.9 million | +34.5% |
| 118 | Aluminum bars/rods | $250.5 million | +10.9% |
| 119 | Vinyl chloride polymers | $246.9 million | +39.2% |
| 120 | Polyacetal/ether/carbonates | $244.1 million | +75.2% |
| 121 | Railway/tram locomotives, rolling stock | $243.8 million | +8.7% |
| 122 | Carbonates, percarbonates | $242.6 million | +11.4% |
| 123 | Aluminum wire | $242 million | -30.8% |
| 124 | Beryllium | $240.9 million | +45.1% |
| 125 | Sanitary towels, baby napkins/liners | $238.3 million | -36% |
| 126 | Lead (unwrought) | $237 million | -12.5% |
| 127 | Machinery parts | $235 million | +49.7% |
| 128 | Other food preparations | $233.4 million | +11.2% |
| 129 | Blood fractions (including antisera) | $231.7 million | +11.7% |
| 130 | Non-granulated slag, dross | $227.1 million | +193% |
| 131 | Polyamides | $226.3 million | +19.7% |
| 132 | Steam/vapor turbines | $223.8 million | +389.2% |
| 133 | Transmission shafts, gears, clutches | $222.2 million | +38.6% |
| 134 | Electrical converters/power units | $215.6 million | +31.9% |
| 135 | Cobalt | $215.3 million | +247.6% |
| 136 | Miscellaneous machinery | $213.2 million | +8.5% |
| 137 | Electrical/optical circuit boards, panels | $211.3 million | -1.4% |
| 138 | Float/ground/polished glass in sheets | $208.9 million | -5.1% |
| 139 | Iron or non-alloy steel wire | $208.4 million | +43% |
| 140 | Soya-bean oil-cake, other solid residues | $206.4 million | +45.2% |
| 141 | TV/radio/radar device parts | $205.9 million | -24.7% |
| 142 | Beet-pulp, brew/distilling waste | $201.9 million | +35.7% |
| 143 | Plastic packing goods, lids, caps | $201.3 million | +16.6% |
| 144 | Hair preparations | $199.1 million | +4.7% |
| 145 | Nitrile-function compounds | $195.8 million | +20.6% |
| 146 | Phosphates, polyphosphates | $194.8 million | +22.5% |
| 147 | Styrene polymers | $194.1 million | +12.4% |
| 148 | Sodium/potash hydroxide, peroxide | $191.8 million | +34.5% |
| 149 | Distilled tar | $191.1 million | +97.9% |
| 150 | Centrifuges, filters and purifiers | $190.8 million | -10% |
| 151 | Poultry meat | $190.7 million | +10.3% |
| 152 | Electric water heaters, hair dryers | $189.7 million | +32.7% |
| 153 | Automobile bodies | $189.2 million | +74.8% |
| 154 | Rape/colza seeds | $188.1 million | +141.9% |
| 155 | Margarine | $187.8 million | -6.1% |
| 156 | Pipe/chewing/snuff tobaccos | $186.6 million | -12% |
| 157 | Regulate/control instruments | $186.5 million | -23.1% |
| 158 | Bottles, flasks, jars, pots | $183.3 million | +11.9% |
| 159 | Heavy machinery (bulldozers, excavators, road rollers) | $180.1 million | +41.4% |
| 160 | Sugar (cane or beet) | $177.9 million | -34.8% |
| 161 | Beauty/makeup/skin care preparations | $176.3 million | +0.1% |
| 162 | Veneer sheets, sheets for sawn wood | $173.9 million | +27.4% |
| 163 | Paper containers, cellulose wadding | $172.6 million | +19.4% |
| 164 | Asbestos | $171.8 million | +1.3% |
| 165 | Asphalt, similar materials | $171.7 million | +12.1% |
| 166 | Sugar confectionery (no cocoa) | $169.7 million | +10.4% |
| 167 | Packaged insecticides/fungicides/herbicides | $169.6 million | +14.6% |
| 168 | Plastic plates, sheets, film, tape, strips | $165.9 million | +14.8% |
| 169 | Chemical industry products/residuals | $164.7 million | +36.3% |
| 170 | Alcohol (including spirits, liqueurs) | $163.4 million | +11% |
| 171 | Plastic tubes, pipes, fittings | $159.3 million | +10.4% |
| 172 | Copper ores, concentrates | $158.7 million | +1088.1% |
| 173 | Glass fibers | $156.8 million | +18.4% |
| 174 | Lower-voltage switches, fuses | $156.3 million | +9.5% |
| 175 | Coffee/tea extracts, concentrates | $156 million | +2% |
| 176 | Malt beer | $150.6 million | +16.7% |
| 177 | Air or vacuum pumps | $150 million | +20.6% |
| 178 | Non-alcoholic drinks (not water/juice/milk) | $150 million | +16.4% |
| 179 | Linseed | $147.3 million | -22.2% |
| 180 | Miscellaneous animal feed preparations | $145.2 million | +9% |
| 181 | #N/A | $143.1 million | +2.1% |
| 182 | Bran, other residues | $142.5 million | +6.4% |
| 183 | Railway track construction material | $141.3 million | +1.9% |
| 184 | Cellulose fiber paper | $140.3 million | -4.5% |
| 185 | Mineral wools including slag-wool, rock-wool | $136.8 million | +45.1% |
| 186 | Harvest/threshing machinery | $135.9 million | +15% |
| 187 | Sauces, mixed condiments, mixed seasonings | $134.9 million | -1.1% |
| 188 | Other animal leather | $134.2 million | -11.2% |
| 189 | Ball, roller bearings | $130.2 million | +10.4% |
| 190 | Unsaturated acyclic mono acids | $125.3 million | +34.1% |
| 191 | Personal toilet/shaving preparations, deodorants | $125.2 million | +4.3% |
| 192 | Amino-resins | $124.8 million | +13.5% |
| 193 | Unused stamps (current or new issue) | $124.8 million | +22.9% |
| 194 | Piston engine parts | $123.5 million | -9.5% |
| 195 | Engines (diesel) | $121.8 million | -26.7% |
| 196 | Petroleum jelly, mineral waxes | $114.4 million | -4.2% |
| 197 | Oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers | $114.4 million | -3.7% |
| 198 | Miscellaneous preserved fruits | $109 million | +8.8% |
| 199 | Flat-rolled thin alloy steel products | $108.4 million | +33.8% |
| 200 | Organic surface-active goods, soap | $107.2 million | -8% |
These 200 exported goods were worth a subtotal of US$367.3 billion or roughly 82% by value for all products exported from the Russian Federation during 2018.
In macroeconomic terms, Russia’s total exported goods represent 10.7% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2018 ($4.213 trillion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 10.7% for exports to overall GDP per PPP in 2018 compares to 11.5% for 2014, seeming to indicate a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Russia’s total economic performance. And while this article focuses on exported goods, it is interesting to note that Russia also provided $64.9 billion worth of exports-related services to global customers for an additional 1.5% of GDP in PPP.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Russia’s unemployment rate was 4.6% as of November 2019 down from 4.7% in May 2018, according to Trading Economics.
See also Russia’s Top 10 Imports, Russia Top Trading Partners, Top Russian Trade Balances and Russia’s Top 10 Major Export Companies
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook: Country Profiles. Accessed on January 17, 2020
Forbes 2015 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on January 17, 2020
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on January 17, 2020
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on January 17, 2020
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on January 17, 2020
Richest Country Reports, Key Statistics Powering Global Wealth. Accessed on December 20, 2019
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on January 17, 2020
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Russia. Accessed on January 17, 2020
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on January 17, 2020