Russia Increased Gold Exports to China by 800% 0 6

In 2025, Russia increased physical gold shipments to China ninefold — to 25.3 tons, which is an increase of 800%, reports "RIA Novosti" citing data from Chinese customs. In monetary terms, the growth surged 14.6 times — to $3.29 billion, according to calculations. Both in money and in tons, these figures were record highs for all time in trade between the Russian Federation and China. In December 2025, Russian exports to China amounted to $1.35 billion, or 10 tons, which is also a historical maximum.

At the same time, over the past year, Russia ranked seventh among exporters of this metal in terms of gold shipments to China. Switzerland holds the first position, having sold gold to China worth $25.73 billion, followed by Canada ($11.06 billion), South Africa ($9.42 billion), Australia ($8.77 billion), and Kyrgyzstan ($4.95 billion). In 2024, Russia ranked 11th among suppliers.

China sharply increased gold purchases against the backdrop of Beijing's accumulation of gold reserves and its policy to reduce dependence on the dollar. As reported by the Financial Times in November, China's imports of this metal in 2025 could be several times higher than official data. According to calculations by Societe Generale, the volume of purchases could reach 250 tons — more than a third of all central bank acquisitions worldwide over the past year.

According to expert estimates, gold production in Russia increased by 5.5% year-on-year in January–June of last year — to 160 tons. Analysts noted that by the end of the year, the figure would reach 345 tons, increasing year-on-year by 45% (in 2024, production was about 330 tons).

After the start of the war in Ukraine and the tightening of sanctions, total Russian gold exports decreased by 40% — from 261 tons in 2022 to 158 tons in 2024.

According to the Russian Ministry of Finance, from 2022 to 2025, the volume of gold in the National Wealth Fund, used by authorities to patch budget "holes," decreased by 71%. As of January 1, 2025, there were 160.2 tons of precious metal left in the NWF on unallocated accounts at the Central Bank, down from 554.9 tons as of May 2022.