According to reports, the Russian government will impose flexible export tariffs on certain goods to protect the domestic market. These measures will take effect on October 1 and will be linked to the ruble exchange rate. The measures are temporary and will remain in force until the end of 2024.
　　On September 21, Russia announced the imposition of tariffs on key export products, including steel, metals, and coal. It is reported that oil, natural gas, grain, timber, machinery manufacturing, and scrap metal are exempt from this new tax.
　　Depending on the product, export taxes range from 0% to 10%. Based on the exchange rate of the local currency, tariffs generally fall between 4% and 7%. For fertilizers, depending on the ruble exchange rate, tariffs can rise as high as 10%.
　　Specifically, the tariff rate is 0% when the ruble-to-dollar exchange rate is at or below 80 rubles; 4% when the exchange rate is between 80 and 85 rubles; 4.5% when the exchange rate is between 85 and 90 rubles; 5.5% when the exchange rate is between 90 and 95 rubles; and 7% when the exchange rate exceeds 95 rubles.
　　The Russian government explained that these measures were taken to maintain a reasonable balance between commodity exports and domestic consumption. This decision will help protect the domestic market from the impact of unreasonable price increases.
　　According to customs data, in the first eight months of this year, China’s cumulative coal imports from Russia totaled 70.315 million tons, an increase of 73.1% year-on-year, accounting for 23% of China’s total coal imports.