Russian Companies Face Payment Delays with Chinese Traders Amid Sanctions Pressure

Russian companies are encountering significant delays and increasing costs in transactions with Chinese partners due to tightened compliance measures by Chinese banks following Western threats of secondary sanctions. This has heavily impacted trade volumes, with small businesses facing potential shutdowns. Larger enterprises, however, continue normal operations under special bilateral arrangements.

Russian companies are facing significant delays and rising costs in payments with Chinese trading partners, sources told Reuters. These disruptions, valued at tens of billions of yuan, come after Chinese banks tightened compliance under Western threats of secondary sanctions for dealings with Russia.

Chinese state banks are shutting down transactions with Russia, impacting billions of yuan worth of payments, a close government source revealed. Amid these compliance measures, trade volumes have drastically declined, affecting small companies severely, while larger enterprises manage better due to special bilateral arrangements.

The Kremlin has acknowledged the problem, emphasizing ongoing economic cooperation between the two nations. Despite the issues, payments in prioritized areas continue smoothly, maintaining strong political will from both sides. Russian officials expect the situation to improve, noting that imports from China decreased marginally due to these complications.

(With inputs from agencies.)