The volume of sales abroad of products of Moscow enterprises in the first eight months of 2020 increased by 27.9% compared to the same period of 2019.

We are talking about goods, not raw materials or electricity. According to the deputy mayor of Moscow on economic policy Vladimir Efimov, the total amount of foreign contracts for the supply of products of Moscow companies amounted to 21.52 billion dollars.

Structure and trends of Moscow exports in 2020

Vladimir Efimov explained in detail what processes took place in the Russian and Moscow exports and how the industry has functioned in conditions of total restrictions associated with the pandemic.

In a specified indicator of the total growth of non-resource and non-energy exports (NNE) of Moscow, a proportional increase in the production of the agro-industrial sector is noticeable, said Efimov. Thus, 21.3% more agro-industrial products were exported than in the first 8 months of 2019. The total amount of contracts amounted to 2.2 billion USD.

Slightly less, but also significantly increased the volume of supplies of products of the processing and food industry - by 17%. Thus, the sectoral enterprises of Moscow and the region shipped abroad a total of products worth 400 million dollars.

The leading countries in the procurement of non-resource and non-energy products of Moscow companies are the UK, USA, China and Kazakhstan. British companies have bought goods from Moscow to 6.67 billion dollars - almost a third of Moscow's exports excluding raw materials and electricity. Second place in terms of volume was Kazakhstan with a total contract amount of $ 1.58 billion - a 7% of the total structure of Moscow's foreign trade. Approximately the same amount was exported to the United States and Belarus, $1.48 and $1.5 billion respectively. The leader of importers of Moscow-made goods was followed by China with the total sum of contracts of $1.15 billion.

If we sum up the total of five largest countries importing non-resource and non-energy products of Moscow companies, the volume of supplies to the United States, Britain, China, Kazakhstan and Belarus increased by as much as 37.4%, and this is also a record.

Noticeable growth in exports of manufactured goods

Alexander Prokhorov, the head of Moscow department of investment and industrial policy, has given his assessment of the results of 2020 in terms of non-resource and non-energy export of Moscow manufacturers. He, in particular, praised the marked increase in the supply of industrial products manufactured in Moscow and the region abroad.

According to Prokhorov, in 2020 the export volume of capital's industrial enterprises increased by 28.7% compared to the previous similar period and reached almost 20 billion dollars. The exact figure is $19.31 billion, which is almost a record for the nearest past years. This is a particularly significant result, because we should take into account all the difficulties of international trade that have arisen in connection with the pandemic.

Alexander Prokhorov also assessed Moscow's exports by key sectors, noting the most notable trends. For example, the best results in terms of the growth dynamics of exports have shown Moscow pharmaceuticals, the chemical industry and cosmetics manufacturers. For example, the demand for polyethylene and polypropylene, produced in Moscow, increased several times, as many countries rushed to establish mass production of personal protective equipment.

In general, shipments abroad of products of Moscow chemical companies in the first eight months of 2020 increased by 14.8%. In monetary terms this equals 2.05 billion U.S. dollars. In the entire structure of Moscow's industrial exports, the capital's chemicals account for more than 10%. The polyethylene was purchased by different countries for more than a quarter of a billion dollars, and polypropylene was supplied for almost the same amount, plus detergents and household chemicals worth over 70 million dollars.

It is worth mentioning the peculiarities of exports of Moscow confectionary factories and agro-industrial products of the region in general, including bread, flour products and sweets. This also includes all flour-based products with the addition of dairy products, including finished animal feed.

Turkey bought the most such products in 2020 from Moscow enterprises - in the amount of $268.95 million. Kazakhstan is second in the list of procurement leaders with a total contract amount of $228.21 million, followed by Belarus with $178.79 million. Eastern countries Saudi Arabia with $133.08 million of imports and Egypt with $129.83 million round out the top five of purchases.

State assistance to exporters

Amid the pandemic and all the manifestations of the crisis associated with restrictions on international traffic, Russian exports in 2020 needed state support. Such support was provided on a case-by-case basis. Careful communication with the capital's exporting companies was entrusted to the Department of Investment and Industrial Policy.

A special specialized center for the development of export "Mosprom" was created at the department. It was he who was entrusted with the main functions of regulation and assistance to the capital's medium and large business in the field of industry and agriculture. The Centre helped in resolving technical questions, overcoming administrative barriers, and carrying out explanatory work on important issues.

The state support to Moscow export was also expressed in direct financial support to those market players who needed such support and where it would be most effective. Most of the support meant subsidies to compensate for the costs of shipping exports abroad and assistance in solving difficulties related to borders closed because of the pandemic.