How Chinese business is occupying the Russian market
The redistribution of foreign participation in the Russian market has made Chinese business the main player - in the nine months of 2024, the number of registered companies with co-owners from China increased by 32% compared to the same period in 2023, SPARK-Interfax analysts calculated. The share of Chinese business in the total number of new company registrations is 34% in 2024 (13% in 2021). The monthly number of registrations (about 200) exceeded the level of 2021 fourfold - China took first place among foreign participants, surpassing Belarusian entrepreneurs who were in the lead in 2023 by almost a third.
The revenue of companies with the participation of entrepreneurs from China almost tripled in 2021–2023, outpacing the dynamics of turnover in the economy (there are no comparable data on turnover and revenue, but a comparison of the dynamics is acceptable and gives an idea of the relative speed of Chinese expansion, see chart). The sectoral distribution of companies with Chinese participation is uneven. Among the key sectors in which they showed growth (94% of total revenue), motor vehicle trade was in the lead: with car dealers’ revenue growing by 5.1 times in 2021–2023, the sector’s share increased from 24% to 43%. This growth was based on the production of Chinese cars in the Russian Federation: the revenue of their manufacturers exceeded the 2021 level by 4.3 times.
Wholesale trade accounts for 26% of the total revenue of “Chinese” business in the Russian Federation (35% in 2021); 38% of all enterprises with Chinese participation operate in the sector. The structure of “wholesale” is changing: growth in trade in mechanical engineering products (revenue increased by 2.2 times, the share of the sector is 69%), a decrease in the share of other industrial goods (increase by 1.8 times; weight is 16%), growth in trade in consumer goods (food - 2.7 times, light industry - 2.1 times; weight - 11%).
Revenue in Russian companies with Chinese participation in processing grew more slowly (over the year - 2.7 times), the share of processing in revenue fell from 20% to 18%. The leaders are the automotive industry (its share in processing increased from 46% to 73%), metallurgy (the share decreased from 17% to 7%), woodworking (decrease from 9% to 3%). Analysts note scientific and technical activities and transport as fast-growing ones. Their share in total revenue is 6%, but the growth was rapid (4.1 times and 2.8 times, respectively, in 2023 compared to 2021).
