Commodity supplies at risk if Russia hit by sanctions
Prices of nickel and aluminium have soared to multi-year highs on supply disruption fears
Escalating tensions between Moscow and Western countries over Ukraine and the possibility of sanctions against Russia have fuelled fears supplies of key commodities produced and exported by Russian companies could suffer.
The United States and European countries have threatened to impose sanctions on Russia if it invades Ukraine, something Moscow has repeatedly denied planning.
Prices of nickel and aluminium have soared to multi-year highs on supply disruption fears.
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Following are some details about Russia's major commodity exports.
ALUMINIUM
Most Russian metal producers have so far escaped sanctions imposed by the West since Moscow annexed the Crimea in 2014.
One exception is the world's largest aluminium producer outside China, Rusal, under sanctions imposed by the United States between April 2018 and early 2019.
Rusal produced 3.8 million tonnes of aluminium in 2021, about 6% of the estimated world production.
Europe, Asia and North America are Rusal's main markets. Miner and commodity trader Glencore has a long-term deal running until 2025 to buy primary aluminium from Rusal.
COBALT
Data from US Geological Survey (USGS) shows Russia produced 7,600 tonnes of cobalt last year, more than 4% of world total.
