NEW YORK, April 15. /TASS/. New sanctions imposed by the US and the UK will result in an increase in supplies of Russian metal to China, same as previously Western restrictions fortified Russia’s positions as the main supplier of energy resources to China, Bloomberg reported.

Supplies of Russian key commodities to the People’s Republic of China will also "enhance Shanghai’s role as a venue to set prices for materials crucial to the global economy," the agency added.

The London Metal Exchange’s ban on Russian aluminum, copper and nickel produced after April 13, 2024, "is likely to drive Chinese imports even higher," Bloomberg said, adding that it also leaves the Shanghai Futures Exchange as the only major commodities bourse in the world to accept Russian shipments of the three metals.

The new sanctions "will push more exports of Russian metal to countries outside US and UK jurisdictions, especially China," according to China’s financial company Guotai Junan Securities. The extra supply will also encourage the export of metals produced in China as more material pools within its borders, the broker said in a note. China has become the world’s biggest producer of refined copper and aluminum and a major player in nickel via investments in Indonesia.

Chinese importers have taken advantage of Beijing’s strategic alliance with Moscow to win discounts on key raw materials, paying in yuan to bypass the dollar, which advanced Beijing’s desire to unseat the greenback as the world’s reserve currency. the agency noted.

On April 12, the UK and the US expanded sanctions against Russia in trade of metals, which suggest that the London Metal Exchange (LME) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange will no longer be allowed to replenish the stocks of aluminum, copper and nickel in their warehouses through the supply of Russian raw materials. London and Washington said in a joint statement that the restrictions did not cover the existing reserves of Russian metals in the warehouses of both exchanges, with which it will still be possible to carry out trading operations. However, the London Metal Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange will no longer buy new aluminum, copper and nickel produced by Russia.

In December 2023, the UK completely banned the import of copper, aluminum and nickel of Russian origin. In the US, a similar ban is starting to take effect now, but it does not apply to metals produced before April 13, 2024.