We no longer do business with the Russians! Such was the situation in the West after the invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin’s army at the end of February. Numerous packages of sanctions from the US and EU followed, most of which were accepted by Switzerland. The goal: to seriously weaken the Russian economy.
However, since the beginning of the war, it is now seen that trade with Russia has actually increased in many western countries. As the newspaper “Tages-Anzeiger” reported on Wednesday, Switzerland is also doing more business today than before the Russian invasion. The newspaper is based on figures from the Federal Office of Customs and Border Security (BAZG). Between 2017 and 2021, Switzerland and Russia traded goods worth CHF 321 million each month. An average of CHF 383 million per month since the start of the war – 19 percent more.
Exports to Russia increased by 6.5 percent and imports by 54 percent.
Pharmaceuticals responsible for export growth
The increase in exports stems from the pharmaceutical sector. Swiss companies currently supply Russia mainly drugs and products for combating immune diseases. This is legal because these goods are not sanctioned for humanitarian reasons.
And the need for foreign pharmaceutical products in Russia is huge – and it could not be guaranteed, especially during the corona epidemic. Supply chain problems caused imports to drop. Need to grow up now. Pharmaceutical imports have also skyrocketed in recent months.
Import increase due to gold shipments
It is surprising at first glance that Switzerland is currently importing so much from Russia. Almost all of the increase in import volume is due to gold imports. But the precious metal is actually on the sanctions list – Switzerland banned the import of Russian gold at the beginning of August.
The last major delivery from Russia took place in November: 6.4 tons arrived in Switzerland for CHF 344 million. It is unclear who bought these huge quantities. Neither BAZG nor the Russian embassy wanted to comment on the request of “Tages-Anzeiger”. But BAZG spokesman Simon Erny made it clear to the newspaper that gold imports would meet “applicable requirements”.
Putin’s gold continues to go to Switzerland because there are holes in the import ban: this only applies to gold exported from Russia after August 4. If the gold comes from Russia and was previously in a safe, for example, in London, it can still be brought to Switzerland without any problems. (no)