MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to the agency, exports from Russia to the European Union amounted to about $53.8 billion, an increase of 38.1 percent, while imports from the European Union to Russia totaled over $23.4 billion, an increase of 20.7 percent.
The European Union’s share in Russia’s total trade volume grew from 43.6 percent in January-April 2016 to 45 percent this year.
The European Union is Russia's largest trading partner, while Russia is the EU's fourth largest trading partner. The bilateral trade volume has recently decreased, in particular, due to sanctions imposed on Russia in 2014 over alleged involvement in the Ukrainian crisis. While in 2012 the EU-Russian trade turnover amounted to $378 billion, it dropped to $213 billion in 2016.
