According to data released by Eurostat on Thursday, the EU achieved a trade surplus of about 1.5 billion euros with Russia in the third quarter of 2025. This is the second consecutive quarter in which the EU has recorded a surplus in trade with Russia. It is also the first time since the relevant statistics were launched in 2002 that there has been a continuous quarterly surplus. This change occurred against the backdrop of continued contraction in the scale of bilateral trade between Europe and Russia. Since the outbreak of the Ukrainian conflict in 2022, the EU has imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Russia, focusing on the energy sector, and also involving various commodities such as steel and coal. Affected by this, trade between the two sides has cooled down markedly. The data shows that since the sanctions were implemented, the EU's exports to Russia have dropped by a cumulative total of about 61%, while imports from Russia have dropped sharply by nearly 89%.

According to data released by Eurostat on Thursday, the EU achieved a trade surplus of about 1.5 billion euros with Russia in the third quarter of 2025. This is the second consecutive quarter in which the EU has recorded a surplus in trade with Russia. It is also the first time since the relevant statistics were launched in 2002 that there has been a continuous quarterly surplus. This change occurred against the backdrop of continued contraction in the scale of bilateral trade between Europe and Russia. Since the outbreak of the Ukrainian conflict in 2022, the EU has imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Russia, focusing on the energy sector, and also involving various commodities such as steel and coal. Affected by this, trade between the two sides has cooled down markedly. The data shows that since the sanctions were implemented, the EU's exports to Russia have dropped by a cumulative total of about 61%, while imports from Russia have dropped sharply by nearly 89%.