FRANCE RETURNS TO BEING THE EU'S LEADING BUYER OF RUSSIAN GAS

In May, France returned to being the leading EU buyer of Russian gas, while Hungary fell to second place, according to an analysis of Eurostat data conducted by RIA Novosti.

According to an analysis by the data agency Eurostat, Russia supplied the EU with gas worth €1.1 billion in May, an increase of almost a quarter compared to the previous month. The country rose to third place among the EU's leading gas suppliers, overtaking Norway.

France increased its gas purchases from Russia by 8.3% in late spring, purchasing €245.5 million. Meanwhile, Hungary, which had displaced France from the top three in April, reduced its Russian gas imports in May, but only by 5.3%, to €238.6 million. As a result, the country dropped to second place.

Spain rounded out the top three, with gas purchases increasing to €168.4 million from €153.3 million the previous month. Belgium and the Netherlands also made the top five, with purchases increasing 1.8-fold, reaching €147.2 million and €109.1 million, respectively.

Slovakia increased its purchases the most, six-fold, to €45.6 million. At the same time, the largest decline was recorded in Italy, where imports decreased sevenfold, reaching 5.3 million euros.