Russia increases gold shipments to China ninefold

Mon Jan 26 2026

Russia increased its gold shipments to China ninefold in 2025 compared with 2024, exporting 25.3 metric tons worth $3.29 billion, Both in monetary terms and in tonnage, the figures were record highs for the entire history of trade between Russia and China, the publication said.

In December 2025, Russian exports to China totaled $1.35 billion, or 10 tons, which was also an all-time high.

At the same time, Russia ranked seventh among gold exporters to China by volume last year. Switzerland ranked first, selling China $25.73 billion worth of gold, followed by Canada ($11.06 billion), South Africa ($9.42 billion), Australia ($8.77 billion) and Kyrgyzstan ($4.95 billion).

In 2024, Russia ranked 11^th among suppliers.

China sharply increased its gold purchases amid Beijing’s buildup of gold reserves and a policy aimed at reducing dependence on the U.S. dollar. Earlier, Russian analysts forecast that gold production in Russia in 2025 would rise by 45% compared with 2024, to 345 tons.

At the same time, after the start of the war in Ukraine and the tightening of sanctions, Russia’s overall gold exports fell by 40%, from 261 tons in 2022 to 158 tons in 2024.

“According to Russia’s Finance Ministry, between 2022 and 2025 the volume of gold in the National Wealth Fund used by the authorities to plug budget gaps fell by 71%,” the publication said. “As of Jan. 1, 2025, the fund held 160.2 tons of precious metal, down from 554.9 tons as of May 2022.”

As reported, Russia has gained unexpected profits from a sharp rise in gold prices since the start of the war in Ukraine. The scale of the gains is comparable to the sovereign assets frozen in Europe over Russia’s invasion.

Source: https://english.nv.ua/