The Big Call

Russia-China: The Great (untapped) Synergy

  • Published 25 Mar 2010

Desultory scenes at one of China's border trading posts with Russia contrast sharply with the huge trade synergies that may start to be realised in the coming three years.

On the Chinese side of the frozen Amur river, which separates China from Russia, the city of Heihe is suffering through a steep drop in the cross-border trade that once made it one of the fastest growing areas in the north-east. At the Daheihe Island International Trade Centre, the biggest local mall that sells everything from digital cameras to food to fishing rods, few Russians were walking around, let alone buying anything. Shop owners complained about poor sales, blaming them on a sluggish Russian economy that has sent the rouble tumbling and forced cash-strapped Russians to cut back on spending.

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