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The UK and the U.S. have announced joint action to restrict prohibited Russian metal exports by extending the existing bans to the world’s two largest metal exchanges.
The London Metal Exchange (LME) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) will no longer trade new aluminium, copper and nickel produced by Russia.
The Prime Minister first announced the intention to act on banning Russian metals in May 2023. New UK legislation was introduced in December last year, banning imports of Russian metals, including aluminium, copper, and nickel. Separately, the U.S. implemented tariff measures on various Russian metal imports.
The UK has placed extensive trade sanctions on Russian commodities, metal being Russia’s most significant export commodity after energy.
The new measures announced on 12th April will exempt existing stock of Russian metal that can still be traded or withdrawn. This exemption minimises any risk of market instability.
Sanctions Minister, Anne-Marie Trevelyan made the following statement:
‘Today’s action ratches up economic pressure on Putin, further depriving him of the key resources and revenue streams he needs to fund his illegal war in Ukraine.
We have now imposed extensive trade sanctions on Russian-origin oil, gas, gold, diamonds, iron, steel, and base metals, dealing a heavy blow to Putin’s war economy. But we must continue to work with our allies to further tighten the screws on the Kremlin.’
Further information:
- To prevent disruption to markets, there are no restrictions on acquiring existing stockpiles of Russian metals already on the exchange.
- This action does not cover titanium or platinum group metals, such as platinum and palladium, which were not included in the UK’s prohibition in December, due to supply chain sensitivities.
Further information with links to the UK legislation can be found here:
Notice to Importers 2953: Russia import sanctions - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The link to the Trade licence for the acquisition of metals is here:
Trade Licence for acquisition of metals - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The original Government press release of the 12th of April 2024 can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-and-us-to-clamp-down-harder-on-the-trade-of-russian-metals
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