Russian Gold Imports to Hong Kong Reach 112.7 Tons in Seven Months

Hong Kong imported 112.7 metric tons of Russian-origin gold in the first seven months of 2026, exceeding its full-year 2025 total as Russian bullion trade shifted after Western market access narrowed.

The January-through-July volume topped the 92.1 metric tons recorded for all of 2025. Russian-origin gold accounted for nearly 15% of Hong Kong’s non-monetary gold imports during the period, compared with 0.6% in 2021, when the city imported 3.3 metric tons.

The shift followed Russia’s loss of access to major Western bullion markets after the invasion of Ukraine. On March 7, 2022, six Russian gold and silver refiners were suspended from the London Bullion Market Association’s Good Delivery lists. Bars those refiners made after the suspension could no longer be accepted in London; bars made earlier remained eligible.

The U.S. Treasury prohibited imports of Russian-origin gold under a determination dated June 28, 2022. The measure was part of a broader effort by the United States and other Group of Seven countries to restrict revenue sources for Russia.

Hong Kong’s figures track imports into the city but do not establish where the gold went afterward. The city’s role as a bullion gateway and Chinese demand may help explain the shift, but the import data do not show that the shipments went to mainland China. They also do not establish how much Russia earned or what effect the shipments had on gold prices.