Posts cite $240 billion Putin‑Xi trade, yuan‑ruble use

Social posts this week pointing to a roughly $240 billion Russia-China trade relationship and heavy use of yuan and rouble settlements track closely with recent official statements from Moscow and earlier Chinese customs data. Vladimir Putin said after talks with Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 20 that Russia and China had shifted “practically all” export-import operations into their national currencies, according to the Kremlin. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov had made a similar point before the trip, saying nearly all payments in the two countries’ trade were now made in yuan and roubles. Chinese customs data published in January put 2024 bilateral trade at a record $244.8 billion. ### Where does the “$240 billion” figure come from? Yuri Ushakov said before Putin’s May 19-20 visit that Russia-China trade turnover reached nearly $240 billion in 2025, according to Kremlin-linked reporting and a Reuters account of his remarks. Ushakov said the structure of that trade had broadened and that the use of national currencies had helped protect commerce from outside pressure. Chinese customs data provide the clearest earlier benchmark. China’s General Administration of Customs said two-way trade with Russia reached 1.74 trillion yuan, or about $244.8 billion, in 2024, up from $240.1 billion in 2023, according to Reuters. ### Did Putin actually say trade is now mostly in yuan and roubles? (aa.com.tr) Putin said on May 20 that coordinated steps by Moscow and Beijing to move settlements into national currencies had been important and that “practically all Russian-Chinese export-import operations are carried out in roubles and yuan,” according to the Kremlin readout and other reports that quoted his remarks. (investing.com) Ushakov used similar language a day earlier. Reuters reported on May 19 that Ushakov said “practically all” payments in the $240 billion trade between the two countries were now made in yuan and rouble. ### Why are officials stressing local-currency trade? (en.interaffairs.ru) Reuters reported in January 2025 that payment hurdles had disrupted bilateral trade after the United States intensified sanctions on banks dealing with Russia. Putin said in December that the main challenge in Russia-China trade was mutual payment settlements. (money.usnews.com) Moscow has framed the currency shift as a way to shield trade from sanctions and market volatility. That description comes from Ushakov’s pre-visit comments and from Putin’s May 20 remarks after talks with Xi. ### Does the number mean trade is still rising every year? The 2024 customs figure of $244.8 billion is an official published total. (investing.com) The “nearly $240 billion in 2025” figure cited by Ushakov is also official, but it suggests trade may have been slightly lower in 2025 than in 2024 if both numbers are measured on the same basis. Neither point changes the core claim in the posts that the relationship remains very large. (aa.com.tr) Some social posts blur those two reference points. The safer formulation is that China-Russia trade was about $244.8 billion in 2024 by Chinese customs data, while Kremlin officials said it was nearly $240 billion in 2025. ### What is verified, and what is still thinly documented? The verifiable pieces are the trade figures and the local-currency settlement claims made by Putin and Ushakov. (investing.com) Those are supported by Kremlin material, Reuters reporting and Chinese customs data. The broader social-media language about “new payment mechanisms” is less clearly documented in the public material surfaced so far. (investing.com) Official and Reuters accounts confirm expanded use of yuan and rouble settlements, but the publicly available sourcing reviewed here is thinner on any newly named bilateral payment system announced this week. (money.usnews.com) (en.interaffairs.ru)