New US sanctions against Russia have prompted Japanese trading houses to ask Russian producer Rusal to stop shipping aluminium and other bulker cargoes.
The companies are trying to source products elsewhere, sources told Reuters.
Rusal was one of the Russian companies placed on a US blacklist on 6 April.
Japanese spot prices for aluminium nearly doubled as a result.
“We have requested Rusal stop shipments of aluminium for our term contracts as we can’t make payment in US dollars and we don’t want to take the risk of becoming a secondary sanction target by the United States,” said a source at a trading house.
