Russia has never been a major seller of copper scrap to China. However, since December 2023, imports of copper scrap from the Russian Federation to China have increased significantly.
The Russian Copper Company (RMC) and Chinese firms evade taxes and avoid Western sanctions by selling new copper rod kept as scrap. This was reported by Reuters on Monday, April 15.
The copper wire rod is crushed by a middleman in the remote Xinjiang Uyghur region to make it difficult to distinguish from scrap, allowing exporters and importers to benefit from the difference in tariffs applied to scrap and new metal, said the newspaper sources.
As of December 2023, the Russian export duty on copper wire rod is 7%, which is lower than the 10% duty on scrap metal. Imports of copper wire rod into China are subject to a 4% tax, while imports of Russian scrap are not subject to the duty.
Sales of new metal kept as scrap that started in December are reflected in the difference in Chinese and Russian data.
Chinese customs data show that China has bought more copper scrap from Russia since December, while Russian data obtained by Reuters from a commercial data provider shows the amount of scrap exported in the largest trading partner of the country, is less important.
Earlier it was reported that China began to protect the domestic market from the rush there after the introduction of the European coal embargo and to prevent cooperation with companies subject to US sanctions.
The Chinese company bought copper from the Russian Federation from the occupied region of Ukraine – media
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Source: korrespondent
I’m Liza Grey, an experienced news writer and author at the Buna Times. I specialize in writing about economic issues, with a focus on uncovering stories that have a positive impact on society. With over seven years of experience in the news industry, I am highly knowledgeable about current events and the ways in which they affect our daily lives.