The BRICS bloc has seen its trade with Russia hit a new record as the US dollar continues to struggle. Indeed, the economic alliance’s unilateral dealings with Moscow are up 6.3% over last year. That shows a notable increase from what ended up being a record year for the country.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade head, Anton Alikhanov, noted that 2023 saw BRICS trade increase 28%. Moreover, the total volume neared the $300 billion mark. All the while, the US dollar has struggled to find its footing since the stock market crash took place on August 5th.
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Russia’s BRICS Trade Set For Record 2024 as De-Dollarization Could Thrive
Throughout the past year, the BRICS bloc has embraced a move away from the US dollar. That has arrived with the promotion of local currency settlements. Although the initiative came with plenty of skepticism, it seems to be paying dividends for a nation hampered by Western sanctions.
BRICS trade dealings with Russia are set to hit a record in 2024, as the US dollar could be set to hit a massive blow. According to a Russian Ministry head, bilateral trade is already on pace for a record figure. In the first five months, it is up more than 6.4% year-to-date.
“The positive dynamics continue. It is clear that there is a certain effect from the powerful reorientation of our commodity flows, the base has grown significantly, but nevertheless, the positive trend continues,” Alikhanov told Russian state media.
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Moscow’s trade with the bloc should only continue to grow. However, it should also continue to be done without the greenback. New reports show that Russia and India are discussing increased de-dollarization efforts in their bilateral trade dealings.
A Reuters report shows that both central banks have renewed discussions to implement dollarless trade. Specifically, they sought to “set a mechanism to expand local currency trade,” as Russia still combats the effects of US sanctions.
Those talks were recently confirmed by Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov. “We discussed a lot of issues to improve trade between India and Russia,” he told reporters. “We also discussed how to facilitate rupee-rouble trade, how non-tariff measures are impacting our trade, and how they should be reduced.”
