The volume of trade between the UK and Russia may rise eight percent in 2019 compared to last year, the Russian Trade Representative to the UK announced at a business forum in London.
The growth of trade turnover between the two countries has been more rapid this year, Boris Abramov said on Wednesday, when the 5th Russian-British Business Forum (RBBF) opened at the Queen Elizabeth II Center.
“We expect the volume of trade to reach $15 billion by the end of 2019,” he stated as cited by TASS. He added that in the first nine months of this year Russia’s non-resource exports to the UK jumped 22 percent, while last year this figure stood at eight percent.
Another positive sign for boosting Russia-UK economic ties is growing bilateral investment, according to the trade official. In just one year direct Russian investment into the UK skyrocketed from $200 million to $3.8 billion.
“Despite the volatility of the global economy, markets uncertainty and Brexit we are optimistic about our business relations with Britain,” Abramov stressed.
The Russian-British Business Forum is an annual event aimed at developing economic ties and cooperation between the two countries. This year’s event with the key theme ‘Digital infrastructure and industry’ is expected to attract over 1,000 British and Russian business leaders, officials, as well as representatives of development institutions and international organizations.
