VINVI

Do you know that British firms imported 3,700 MT of Russian steel since the start of the Ukraine war?

The Govt introduced tough tariffs on Russian products on March 25, hitting them with an

additional tariff increase of 35 percentage points, over and above any existing tariff rate under the terms of the move

But legally they can still be brought to these shores.

UK companies have also bought 14,600 MT of rebar from Russia’s closest ally and neighbor, Belarus

However, it is unclear which firms are buying the Russian and Belarusian products - and potentially helping prop up the Moscow and Minsk regimes by pumping cash into their economies.

We believe proper transparency of origin is essential. All buyers should check where their materials are coming from and be happy with the complete supply chain they are using

The market also wonders whether construction companies or end users are aware of the provenance of the materials.

The Britain Government will immediately call on British companies to boycott Russian and Belorussian steel.

As they want the British companies to always seek to buy British steel as a matter of course, to support local communities, and to help meet environmental targets.

But choosing to buy specifically from Russia and Belarus is a gift to Vladimir Putin at a time when the UK should be seeking to freeze the country out of the world economy.

Worse still, it is an insult to the thousands of brave Ukrainians who have lost their lives in Putin’s barbaric war.

Sanctions are an important tool in the resistance to Russian aggression, and the UK steel industry is more than prepared to manufacture steel domestically.

The UK has taken swift action, including an unprecedented package of diplomatic and economic sanctions, to punish Putin for his barbaric actions in Ukraine.

This includes introducing a 35% additional duty on top of existing tariff measures for various goods from Russia and Belarus, including steel.

This will further isolate the Russian economy from global trade, and ensure it does not benefit from the rules-based international system it does not respect.

What do you think about the UK's move of buying Steel from Russia?