China’s Russian buying spree to continue, says leading Moscow investment bank

The recent acquisition spree by Chinese firms in Russian energy and commodities companies is set to continue into next year as relations between the two nations grow closer, and both continue to show strong support for projects involved in the “Belt and Road Initiative”, according to a senior banker at the Moscow-based, Russian state-backed investment firm VTB Capital.

The fact commodity prices have rebounded from industry cycle lows is also helping further cement the nations’ ties, said Alex Metherell, co-head of global banking at VTB, the investment banking unit of Russian government-controlled VTB Bank.

Levels, however, are still trading significantly below the lofty heights of a few years ago, making it easier for buyers and sellers to agree on a price for complex assets and projects,

“We have definitely seen increased cross-border investments by Chinese firms in Russia in the past 18 to 24 months,” he told the South China Morning Post in an exclusive phone interview.

“Strategic asset owners in Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia are increasingly coming to China, too, as their first port of call before going elsewhere in search of potential long-term strategic investors.”