In an interview with Russia's Izvestia newspaper, Chinese Ambassador to Russia Hanhui Zhang said that China and Russia will further improve financial infrastructure and smooth the settlement channels between business entities.
Zhang Hanhui pointed out, "In recent years, under the strategic guidance of the heads of state of China and Russia, bilateral economic and trade cooperation has overcome various external shocks, the scale of trade has continued to expand, and the trade structure has continued to optimize. In 2024, China-Russia trade will continue to maintain a good development momentum. From January to May, the bilateral trade volume increased by 2.9% year-on-year to US$96.51 billion. According to Russian statistics, most of China-Russia trade has been settled in local currency. The two countries will further improve the financial infrastructure and smooth the settlement channels between business entities. We encourage local currency settlement, but do not exclude other currencies."
The Chinese ambassador added, "China-Russia financial cooperation is an important part and reliable guarantee of the pragmatic cooperation between the two countries. In recent years, the share of local currency settlement in China-Russia bilateral trade has increased significantly, and the financial institutions of both sides have worked together to meet the market needs of trade settlement, asset management, insurance, etc. in the two countries. In the face of trade payment and settlement problems caused by sanctions from third countries, the financial institutions of the two countries will continue to strengthen communication and believe that practical solutions can be found."
In April 2024, Nabiullina, Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, said that the share of local currency settlement between Russia and BRICS countries has tripled in the past two years to 85%.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Novak previously stated that about 80% of Russia's oil and natural gas are sold in rubles and renminbi, accounting for 40% each. It is reported that throughout 2023, more than 90% of the settlements in Russia's mutual trade with China were conducted in rubles and renminbi.
