Mutual trade between Russia and China surged in March in response to Western sanctions. According to Chinese customs data, Russian-Chinese trade rose to an equivalent of $38.2 billion last month, which is a 28 percent increase from a year ago.

China’s imports from Russia rose by 31 percent and Chinese exports to Russia increased by 25.9 percent. This came after Moscow and Beijing unveiled a new payments system based off national currencies instead of the US dollar. China also reaffirmed its commitment to quote “rock solid” economic relations with Russia.