For the first time ever, Russia has entered the top 10 of the world’s chocolate exporters, beating the famed Swiss chocolatiers in terms of value of products sold abroad, the Russian Association of Confectionary Producers said.
Exports of chocolate produced in Russia totaled $839 million in monetary terms in the year to September 2021, the association reported citing data revealed by ITC Trademap and UN Comtrade.
Meanwhile, Switzerland reportedly exported $819 million worth of chocolate during the specified period.
China, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, were the major importers of Russian chocolate, the union said as quoted by Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
According to the association’s estimates, Russian confectionary manufacturing has seen a steady growth over recent years.
In 2021, exports are expected to increase by more than 19% to 824.5 thousand tons in terms of volume, and to $1.68 billion in monetary terms, almost a third higher than pre-pandemic levels.
Chocolate accounts for 51.5% of Russia’s total exports of confectionary.
For more stories on economy & finance visit RT’s business section
