“Business Russia” warned about rising prices for goods from China due to Kazakhstan

Goods imported through parallel imports from China will rise in price by 10-16% if Kazakhstan stops supplies to Russia. Anna Fomicheva, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Economic Activity (FEA) and Digitalization of the Moscow Regional Branch of Business Russia, said this in an interview with URA.RU.

Vice Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebaev, on the sidelines of the Senate, said that Kazakhstan had stopped supplying 106 types of goods to Russia due to the global situation. The export of military goods, including drones, internal parts, specialized electronics, chips and similar products, is completely restricted.

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“Just because it was announced, it doesn’t mean it’s not going on. That is, they still carried black imports. They just work for both yours and ours. The same has always been true of smuggling. Any changes are associated with an increase in deadlines. Whether it will become more expensive or cheaper depends on the logistics leverage and where we are bringing this parallel import from. If it comes from China, and it cannot be imported through Kazakhstan, then we go through an additional country, and naturally it will be about 10-15% more expensive,” said Anna Fomicheva.

In accordance with the list approved by order of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia dated April 19, 2022 No. 1532, some weapons and ammunition are already included in parallel imports, noted Anastasia Zykova, managing partner of Key Consulting Group, member of the Delovaya Rossiya MRO. “It is likely that some of the EAEU HS Commodity Codes will be added to the list in order to resolve the situation that has arisen. Of course, it is impossible to indicate a specific counterparty and partner for the import of goods; multiple factors will be taken into account: existing relations, economic situation. It is necessary to expect official statements for a comprehensive analysis of the situation and its consequences,” the expert explained.

Parallel imports will develop and expand, says economist, member of the MRO “Business Russia” Alexey Khizhnyak. “Since the launch of the parallel import regime, its volume has exceeded $20 billion. According to the Federal Customs Service (FCS), these are mainly cars, machines and equipment. In total, 2.4 million tons of goods were imported last year. I think this year the figures will be even higher,” concluded the agency’s interlocutor.