INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Business at RTSB-RUS, a logistics company that ships cargo by rail across Russia, has boomed over the last 18 months
Amid an exodus of Western rivals and a surge in trade with China, its freight volumes jumped nearly fourfold in 2022 alone, Chief Executive
The invasion of Ukraine and deluge of Western sanctions cut Russia off from its previously vital European trade markets, triggering a
record $191 billion, according to Chinese customs data
In the first six months of 2023, trade turnover in dollar terms was more than double pre-pandemic levels.But such a rapid increase in the
under the weight of higher demand
Now crowded border crossings, at-capacity railways and overloaded ports are threatening to limit how far and how quickly Russia can continue
in building up infrastructure to handle the practical implications of boosting trade
however almost all speak to the difficulties of prioritizing long-term policy goals over short-term political gains in a personalist
delivered, while regional investment projects such as upgrading railway border crossings or modernizing the cargo port at Vladivostok have
Russia-based logistics firm.Part of the problem has also been a change in the type of trade between Russia and China.Russia previously
brought much of its machinery, pharmaceuticals and auto parts from Europe
facing a major shortage of closed cargo containers that are used to transport such goods by sea and rail, shippers and logistics firms told
The Moscow Times.According to a survey of logistics firms by the Institute of Natural Monopolies Research, a research body, the top reason
this year, state-owned Russian Railways said every month some 1,600 container trains wanted to cross the border between Russia and China at
November last year, according to a report by SeaLogic, an information provider for the Russian shipping industry
from Russia over the last 18 months to address some of the key bottlenecks, and other shipping companies report that the worst logjams at
the year as energy revenues plummeted and spending to fund the war in Ukraine spiraled
