China’s imports of Russian coal hit a five-year high in August, the latest sign of Chinese trade providing Moscow with an economic lifeline as it is facing Western isolation over its war in Ukraine.
Shipments of Russian coal reached 8.54 million tonnes last month amid soaring energy demand in the world’s second-largest economy due to extremely hot weather, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Tuesday.
The trade, which was up 57 percent compared with the same period last year, marked the highest volume since authorities began collecting data in 2017.
China and Russia, which earlier this year declared their friendship to have “no limits”, have deepened their economic cooperation since Russian President Vladimir Putin in February ordered his forces to invade Ukraine.
China’s purchase of Russian imports rose 60 percent in August to $11.2bn on the back of surging demand for oil, coal and gas.
Chinese exporters have also ramped up shipments to Russia, with trade volume last month jumping 26 percent year-on-year to $8bn.
Bilateral trade between the sides reached $117.2bn in the first eight months of 2022, up more than 31 percent year on year.
Beijing has declined to condemn the invasion and railed against Western-led sanctions against Moscow, although it has expressed its hope for negotiations and peace between the sides.
At the same time, the Chinese government is widely seen as hesitant to openly violate sanctions for fear of losing access to Western export markets and the US dollar-centric international financial system, with a number of Chinese state-owned financial institutions quietly distancing themselves from the country in recent months.
Carsten Holz, an expert on the Chinese economy at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, cautioned against interpreting surging imports of Russian coal as a coordinated effort by Beijing to support Moscow.
“These are driven by short-term demand side factors, namely the summer heatwave and therefore increased demand for energy in China. Decentralised coal buyers in China will simply have opted for the cheapest, quickly available coal,” Holz told Al Jazeera.
