Bloomberg: US ban on Russian metals will strengthen Russia's position as a key partner of China

The ban on sales of Russian copper, aluminum and nickel on the London Metal Exchange, introduced by the US Treasury and Britain on April 12, will strengthen Moscow’s position as Beijing’s key partner. Bloomberg came to this conclusion, noting that the Shanghai Exchange will now become a key platform that sets prices for materials that are critical in the global the economy.

The agency recalled that thanks to sanctions, Russia has already surpassed Saudi Arabia in terms of crude oil supplies to China. Moscow also ranks second in coal imports to Beijing, and this year it will also become the largest gas supplier to the country.



As for the import of Russian aluminum to China, it has already reached a record level, and with the introduction of sanctions it will increase even more. The exclusion of the dollar from payments to China is beneficial for importers. This helps to overcome the consequences of geopolitical conflicts and shift the dollar from the position of the world reserve currency, the publication believes.

China, against the backdrop of new anti-Russian sanctions, is gaining advantages in the global aluminum trade: shares of the metal on the LME have already jumped by 9,4%, and on the Shanghai Exchange they grew only by 2,9%.

The London Stock Exchange itself is already is being prepared to a “flood” of Russian metal. Under the new restrictions, no metal from the Russian Federation produced after April 13 will be allowed to be supplied to the London Exchange (LME), which plays a central role in the global metals world, serving as a benchmark for benchmark prices for everything from aluminum to zinc.