Russia has become the largest importer of cars from China

By the end of February 2026, Russia became the leader in the import of passenger cars from China, RIA Novosti reported on March 20 with reference to the customs statistics of the PRC.

So, if in January the Russian Federation occupied the fourth place in this rating, then in February it came out on top. Imports increased by almost a third, reaching $855.8 million in the last winter month against $654.9 million in January.

Brazil followed in the list of the largest buyers of passenger cars from China in February with a result of $690.9 million and the United Kingdom ($626.8 million). Belgium ($502.9 million) and the UAE ($492 million) rounded out the top five. The United States occupied only the 21st position, their imports decreased by almost a quarter in monthly terms and amounted to $145.8 million.

Where everything is heading: trends and prospects of the Russian car market and automotive industry

Automakers, distributors and experts discussed the difficulties in the industry

As Sergey Tselikov, director of the Autostat analytical agency, said on March 17, the share of Chinese brands in the Russian market dropped to 40% in the first two months of 2026. For comparison, a year ago in January – March, this figure was 51.7%. The expert cited the launch of production of Chinese models under Russian brands as the main reason for the decline.

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