China’s trade with Russia hit a record 1.28 trillion yuan ($190 billion) last year, the government said, even as Russia’s imports from the European Union fell on sanctions related to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

China’s 2022 exports to and imports from Russia accounted for 3 per cent of China’s total trade, Lyu Daliang, spokesperson of the General Administration of Customs, told a news briefing.

Shipments of Chinese goods to Russia have grown for six months in a row.

Russia more than doubled its rail exports of liquefied petroleum gas to China in 2022 as part of the Kremlin’s drive to diversify its energy export sales, a Reuters analysis based on data from industry sources showed.

China’s imports of Russian natural gas through the Power of Siberia pipeline are set to have risen by at least 50 per cent in 2022, according to Russia’s top producer, Gazprom. China’s Russian crude oil imports expanded 10 per cent on year in the first 11 months at nearly 80 million tonnes.

China’s trade with Russia slowed sharply in dollar terms in December, with exports up 8.3 per cent from the same month last year, down from November’s 17.9 per cent rise, according to Reuters calculations based on Friday’s Chinese customs data.

Imports from Russia rose 8.3 per cent, slowing from a 28.5 per cent gain in November, as a surge in COVID-19 infections following China’s abrupt end to severe restrictions weighed on domestic demand.

But with the dismantling of Beijing’s zero-COVID policy, however, Russia and China are ready to resume mutual travel as soon as possible and deepen their strategic cooperation, Zhang Hanhui, China’s ambassador to Russia, said this week.

Meanwhile China’s crude oil imports fell for the second year in a row in 2022 despite a burst of purchases in the fourth quarter, as the country’s strict COVID-19 control measures hobbled the economy and fuel demand.

Imports for the full year by the world’s top buyer totalled 508.28 million tonnes, equivalent to 10.17 million barrels per day, 0.9 per cent lower than in 2021, according to data from the General Administration of Customs.

That followed a drop in 2021, which was China’s first annual oil import decline in two decades. Imports in 2020 hit a record high of 10.8 million bpd.

Imports slowed for most of the year as refiners faced weakening margins and sluggish fuel demand, but started picking up in October as Beijing moved to support the industry by drastically boosting fuel exports.

Refiners took in 4 per cent more crude oil from a year earlier at 48.07 million tonnes in December, about 11.3 million bpd, the third highest in 2022, as state refiners bought Saudi crude at lower official prices and independent refiners rushed to use quotas.

State refiners raised purchases of Saudi crude oil due to its lower pricing versus November, while independent refiners chased deeply discounted Iranian oil trying to use up their quotas before year-end, said traders and analysts.

With the government focused on reviving economic growth this year after dropping its tough COVID control measures, some analysts are expecting China’s crude oil imports to rebound strongly in 2023.

“China’s more front-loaded crude quota release schedule indicates Beijing expects non-state refineries to run harder in response to stronger demand after China’s reopening,” said Sun Jianan, China market analyst with Energy Aspects.

Friday’s data also showed fuel exports - including gasoline, diesel, aviation fuel and marine fuel oil - reached 7.7 million tonnes in December, the highest since April 2020 and up from 6.14 million tonnes in November.

Annual fuel exports, however, remained 11 per cent below 2021 at 53.69 million tonnes, due to steep reductions in overseas shipments earlier in 2022 as the government sought then to curb excessive domestic processing.

Natural gas imports last month via pipelines and as liquefied natural gas (LNG) reached 10.28 million tonnes, down 12 per cent on the year. Annual imports fell 9.9 per cent at 109.25 million tonnes, data showed.

The lower purchases were due to deep cuts in LNG purchases which are set to record their first major decline since 2006 as demand was crimped by surging global prices and the weak economy.

Meanwhile China’s copper imports in December registered a yearly decline in the wake of cooling demand as factory activity shrank at a sharper pace amid surging COVID-19 infections.

Imports of unwrought copper and copper products were 514,049 tonnes in December, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Friday.

The purchases, which included anode, refined, alloy and semi-finished copper products, were down 12.7 per cent from imports of 589,165 tonnes in December 2021, a 14-month high.