The newspaper Kommersant published an article on the price dynamics of Russian oil in China, based on an October monitoring report by the Gaidar Institute. According to the study, the gap between the average price of Russian oil and that of oil from other countries imported by China narrowed to 5.2% in August, down from 15.6% in July.
Authors of the monitoring report, Alexander Knobel and Alexander Firanchuk, Senior Researchers of the International Trade Department at the Gaidar Institute, noted that the reasons for shifts in the price discount have varied over the previous few months. In December 2025, the discount reached 14% amid tightened sanctions against Russia, which resulted in a reduction in Russian oil shipments to India and redirection of part of those volumes to China.
By March 2026, the price gap had practically vanished, standing at 0.4%. However, in summer, the discount increased again. According to authors’ explanation, this was due to a shortage of Middle Eastern oil in Asian markets, i.e., prices for competing grades increased more rapidly than those of Russian oil.
Monitoring data make it possible to track how sanctions-related restrictions and shifts in the global oil market affect pricing terms for Russian oil supplies to China.