Russia offers up possibility of ending import duties on aluminium

The Russian government is looking at ending duties on imports of aluminium in response to the mega tie-up of the country’s two big producers—RusAl and SUAL—and the aluminium interests of Swiss trade house Glencore.

Russian minister of economics and trade, German Oskarovich Gref, was quoted by local media as saying the new entity would have an almost total monopoly on supplies of primary metal in the country and that Russia should therefore “remove all barriers and admit global competitors so that (the new entity) does not raise prices and consumers do not suffer."