Soaring energy prices help Russia push its current account surplus to a record $70.1 billion in the second quarter despite sanctions

Russia's current account surplus was $70.1 billion in the second quarter of 2022.

In the first quarter, exports were $166.4 billion, but in the second quarter they fell to $150.3 billion. The current account has a surplus for the first six months of the year.

Russia's finances were supported by soaring energy prices and commodity exports even as Western nations imposed sanctions. As a result of the US and its allies isolating the Russian economy, imports are down.

Scott Johnson, an economist, said that a ballooning trade surplus shows that Russia is doing well from high commodity prices to sustained demand from many export partners. It's also a symptom of distress due to the plunge in imports.

The IEA said in May that the Kremlin was earning 20 billion dollars a month in oil sales.

Russia's capital controls have made the ruble the top performing currency against the dollar this year, even though it had fallen to less than a penny at the beginning of the war in Ukraine.