Russia doubled its imports of raw material needed to produce gunpowder

Russia has increased imports of nitrocellulose, which is used, among other things, to produce gunpowder for artillery shells. Among the nitrocellulose producers supplying Russia in the past two years are also companies from the United States, Germany and Taiwan, The Wall Street Journal reported in an article titled “Russia Doubled Imports of an Explosives Ingredient—With Western Help”, where the newspaper cited commercial data. Imports of nitrocellulose from Russia increased by 70% in 2022, the first year of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. By mid-2023, 3,039 tonnes had been imported – nearly double the amount from 2021. As the Wall Street Journal notes, only a few countries in the world produce nitrocellulose because its main use is to make ammunition and it is subject to international trade restrictions. Nitrocellulose is also used for civilian purposes, but analysts believe that increasing imports are for equipment as the Russian economy is reoriented […]
Source: News Beast

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