When the US imposed sanctions last week on 24 Russian oligarchs and officials, and 12 related companies, in response to “worldwide malign activity” by the Russian state, the impact was not immediately clear. But by Monday morning it was unmissable.
The share prices of Rusal, one of the world’s largest producers of aluminium, and its parent company EN+ Group, both sanctioned for their material connection to Oleg Deripaska (also on the sanctions list), fell roughly 50 per cent. The wider Russian market was down 10 per cent. Those, such as commodity traders, transacting with designated companies found related payments blocked as banks reacted to the news. Clearstream, a key component of investment market infrastructure, announced it would stop processing related securities transactions.
Sanctions have become the preferred tool of policymakers feeling an imperative to act — a step short of conflict. The UN, the EU and the US have made extensive use of sanctions against Iran for a range of issues, including its nuclear programme and human rights abuses. The UN and US have imposed sanctions on North Korea in response to its continued development of a nuclear capability. Each missile launch or underground test is greeted with a further round of economic pressure.