Metals World Agonizes Over War But Keeps Buying From Russia
- Companies with long-term deals are still buying Russian metal
- A pile-up of Russian metal on the LME could create dislocation
A worker takes a sample of liquid aluminum from an electrolysis bath at an aluminium smelter in Sayanogorsk, Russia.
Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Last month, 13 copper-industry representatives at the London Metal Exchange were asked whether Russian metal should be blocked from its warehouses. Ten of them said “yes.” But when advisory groups for nickel and aluminum discussed the same question, the general consensus was “no.”
The LME, which is the ultimate decision-maker, says it won’t take action that goes beyond government sanctions -- which, so far, have left most of the metals industry untouched.