Russian Economy Shielded From US-China Trade Fallout - Minister

Russian Economy Minister Maxim Oreshkin said Wednesday that Russia's economy was one of the most protected national economies and would resist the consequences of the US-China trade war

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th May, 2019) Russian Economy Minister Maxim Oreshkin said Wednesday that Russia's economy was one of the most protected national economies and would resist the consequences of the US-China trade war.

"A global situation like this will affect all financial markets... But Russia doesn't need to expect anything extraordinarily severe. Russia is one of the most protected economies when it comes to external influences," he told reporters.

Oreshkin admitted that the country's trade in raw materials would be one of the most affected sectors, and that the spat between the world's two biggest economies would definitely weigh down prices globally.

"This whole thing will have a negative effect on demand for Russian goods.

This includes raw materials ... meaning prices of oil, metals and coal will drop ... but non-raw material exports will be dampened too," the minister said.

He assured reporters that a slump in oil prices would not "hurt" the national currency. If the prices go down, Oreshkin said, the Russian government will buy less foreign Currency on the international financial market to shore up the ruble.

The United States and China have been engaged in a tit-for-tat tariff war since last summer. Washington more than doubled import duties on $200 billion of Chinese goods last week, further unsettling markets and prompting Beijing to hike tariffs on $60 billion of US imports starting from June.