German exports to the CIS countries, excluding Russia, increased significantly in 2023.

From January to October 2023, exports to these countries increased by 30% to €7.3B. At the same time, the supply of goods from Germany to the Russian Federation decreased by 39.1% to €7.6B.

There is an assumption that many goods reach the Russian Federation through post-Soviet countries, bypassing sanctions. Among these countries, the largest part of German exports went to Kazakhstan: an increase of 32% to €2.8B. The supply of goods to Belarus increased even more, by 40.8% to €1.5B. Germany’s trade with Kyrgyzstan increased by 180.1% to €591M. At the same time, the supply of goods to Uzbekistan decreased by 4.2% to €846M.

The majority of the supply to the CIS countries comprised German cars and spare parts. In this area, exports increased by 65% to €2.1B. Other important export items are industrial equipment (+38.7%, €1.6B) and chemical industry products (+20.5%, €640M).