According to the results of the first nine months of this year, China became one of the three largest suppliers of decorative and care cosmetics to the Russian market. Thus, the Celestial Empire has gained a foothold among Russia's key foreign trade partners in the segment of beauty products, along with South Korea and France.
Overall, cosmetics imports to Russia are showing steady growth. In nine months, the volume of purchases increased by 11% compared to the same period last year and reached $ 863.7 million. This reflects the recovery of consumer demand and the restructuring of logistics and trade chains after the change in the structure of foreign trade.
South Korea remains the leader in terms of supplies, from where cosmetics worth $ 273.9 million were imported to Russia. France is in second place with an indicator of 118.9 million dollars. China took the third position, increasing exports to 115.4 million dollars and rising from fourth place, displacing Poland from the top three.
The growth dynamics of Chinese supplies has become particularly noticeable. During the year, cosmetics exports from China to Russia increased 1.6 times, which indicates the expansion of the presence of Chinese brands and contract manufacturing in Russian retail and marketplaces. Market experts attribute this growth to a combination of competitive pricing, product range flexibility, and product adaptation to meet the needs of Russian distributors.
The top five suppliers also included Germany with a volume of $66.4 million and Poland with $64.4 million. This is followed by Italy, Kazakhstan, Israel, Spain and Belgium. At the same time, the highest growth rates were shown by shipments from Croatia, which increased by more than 70 times, as well as from Belgium and China.
China and France occupy the leading positions in the segment of decorative lip cosmetics. Chinese shipments of lip products increased 1.7 times and reached $20.3 million, while French shipments reached $12.5 million. South Korea has also significantly strengthened its position, doubling exports of this category to $10.1 million.
A similar structure is observed in the category of eye makeup products. China supplied products worth $21.1 million, France — $11.3 million, and South Korea — $7.2 million. These countries have displaced Poland from the top three, reflecting the changing preferences of importers and end users.
In the segment of care cosmetics, more than a third of Russian imports accounted for South Korea — $ 253.9 million. France and China were also in the top three, which confirms the steady demand for Asian and European skin care products.
For participants in foreign economic activity, current trends mean a further strengthening of the role of the Asian direction, primarily China and South Korea, as well as increased competition between suppliers in the context of the active development of online commerce and marketplaces.
