According to the Confectionery Market Research Center, exports of confectionery products of Russian production in 2017 grew by 5.9% compared to 2016 and amounted to 430.4 thousand tons worth $ 982 million. Despite the increase in exports, a historic record of 2013, when abroad was sent sweets at $ 1.18 billion, is not overcome.
The most significant in terms of value was the segment of chocolate sweets. The volume of their export last year amounted to 179.1 thousand tons (+ 16.1%) for $ 531.3 million. Several factors determined the high dynamics of export sales: an increase in the activity of Russian producers and exporters, as well as a relatively weak ruble, as on the foreign markets mostly cheap types of confectionery products were sold, analysts of the Center emphasize.
For many years, the main buyers of Russian-made sweets are the countries of the near abroad - first of all, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Azerbaijan and the states of Central Asia. Since 2016, Russian companies are actively exploring new directions, of which the best results were shown by the Chinese and Mongolian markets. Last year, China again was the second-largest buyer of Russian chocolate confectionery, but reduced its position in the Top-5 major buyers of flour pastry from the third place to the fourth. In 2017, China imported 2.5% of the total supply of Russian chocolate for export and 6.7% - flour confectionery.
"Chocolate confectionery products of Russian production in 2017 are the most popular type of sweets for export," said Executive Director of the Center Elizaveta Nikitina. "2018 may prove to be as good for Russian chocolate manufacturers as the previous one, provided the current state of the Russian economy remains preserved, world prices for basic raw materials, and the expected increase in the consumption of chocolate in the world," she said.
Source: sweetinfo.ru.
