Russia Plans to Ship More Than 65,000 Tonnes of Metals Through Murmansk Port

Key Facts

Russia plans to ship more than 65,000 tonnes of metals through the Arctic port of Murmansk to the Mediterranean, on a route that RBC-Україна, citing the Financial Times, says is being used for the first time since 1996. The shift is intended to avoid Ukrainian attacks on Russian ships in the Black Sea, according to the report published on November 7. The report did not say the cargo had already sailed; it described an export plan and the arrival of pig iron at the port ahead of shipment. The pig iron was transported in more than 180 railcars, according to RBC-Україна. The move highlights Russia’s effort to find an alternative outlet for metal exports as risks to shipping in the Black Sea persist.

Turkey is the cargo’s likely destination, according to the report, as the European Union has banned imports of Russian pig iron since January 1, 2026. The EU ban makes choosing a destination outside the bloc consistent with restrictions on this type of import. Russia had shipped pig iron through the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, but the last such cargo left the port on July 31, the report said without specifying the year. Murmansk had mainly been used to export Russian oil, before Russia also began rerouting grain shipments through the port amid Black Sea risks. The metals route adds a new use for the Arctic port as part of efforts to redirect Russian export flows.

The plan comes amid an escalation in attacks on ships in the region; analysts have estimated that more than 700 attacks have targeted Russian and Ukrainian vessels since the beginning of 2026. A Reuters report said 317 commercial and other vessels were hit in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov between May and October, compared with 74 in the preceding half-year, citing an analyst at Ambrey Analytics. In the third quarter, Ukrainian attacks on ships totaled 137, compared with 92 Russian attacks, the same report said. But the balance shifted in October, when Ambrey recorded 38 Russian strikes against five Ukrainian ones. The Associated Press also reported that nine cargo ships and tankers were hit by air or sea strikes near the coasts of Bulgaria and Romania during 24 days in October, and that at least 30 sailors were confirmed dead or reported missing.

The Murmansk route reflects a broader shift to reroute Russian trade away from Black Sea transit points, including grain shipments. Russia’s agriculture ministry said it was working to redirect export flows to alternative routes, in a Reuters report on an August attack on Novorossiysk. After the attack, Chicago wheat futures rose about 3%, while two major grain terminals were forced to halt operations, Reuters reported. In the first two weeks of August, Ukrainian grain shipments fell 76% from the same period a year earlier, according to Ukraine’s agriculture ministry. Russia’s grain exports through the Black Sea and Sea of Azov also dropped to 0.3 million tonnes in September, from 4.74 million tonnes in the same month a year earlier, according to Russian export data reviewed by Reuters.

Industry indicators offer a backdrop to conditions in Russia’s sector over the same period: the S&P Global manufacturing purchasing managers’ index rose to 49.9 in October from 49.8 in September. The 50 mark separates growth from contraction, Reuters reported, leaving the reading below the growth threshold despite a slight improvement from the previous month. Output and new orders fell for a third consecutive month in October, although the decline in new orders was the slowest in those three months. By contrast, new export orders contracted for a twelfth consecutive month, with the steepest drop since May 2022, as respondents cited weak demand from Commonwealth of Independent States countries, particularly Kazakhstan. Employment declined at its slowest pace since the start of the year, while backlogs contracted for a twenty-first consecutive month; input prices rose at the slowest pace in seven months, while selling-price inflation slowed to its weakest pace since April.