伦敦金属交易所调查童工采矿投诉

One of the City of London’s oldest institutions has launched an investigation into whether cobalt mined by child labour is trading on its exchange, following complaints it is allowing a Chinese company to sell untraceable supplies of the metal widely used in mobile phones and electric vehicles.

伦敦金融城历史最悠久的机构之一针对其交易的的钴是否由童工开采展开调查。此前有人投诉称，该交易所允许一家中国公司销售无法追踪来源的钴，这种金属广泛应用于手机和电动车。

Members of the 140-year-old London Metal Exchange initially raised concerns about questionable cobalt this summer, highlighting their fears the rechargeable battery material may have come from mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo accused of employing children.

有140年历史的伦敦金属交易所(LME)的成员最初在今夏就来源可疑的钴表示关切，强调他们担心这种充电电池原料可能来自刚果民主共和国境内被指使用童工的矿场。

Earlier this month, the LME quietly sent a directive to all suppliers asking them to detail how they guarantee “responsible sourcing” of commodities traded on the exchange. The notice, contained in email seen by the Financial Times, requests a response by December 1.

本月早些时候，LME悄悄向所有供应商发出指示，要求他们详细说明自己如何保证在该交易所交易的大宗商品来自“负责任的来源”。英国《金融时报》看到的这封邮件通知，要求供应商在12月1日前做出回应。

The LME is the world’s most important venue for industrial metals and helps set prices for copper, tin and other metals. If tainted cobalt is found in its network of warehouses it could trigger a backlash from users of the exchange.

LME是全球最重要的工业金属交易所，帮助为铜、锡等金属定价。如果其仓库被发现存在来源可疑的钴，那可能会引发该交易所用户的强烈反弹。

Groups such as Amnesty International say children as young as seven are mining cobalt by hand in the DRC, one of the world’s poorest countries. The allegations have put pressure on companies such as Tesla and Apple to ensure cobalt in their battery-run products is traceable to reputable mines.

大赦国际(Amnesty International)等组织表示，在世界最贫穷国家之一的刚果民主共和国，年仅7岁的儿童在用手工开采钴矿。这些指控给特斯拉(Tesla)、苹果(Apple)等公司施加了压力，要求它们确保各自靠电池运行的产品所用的钴可追溯至声誉较好的矿场。

More than half the world’s cobalt comes from the DRC, where up to one-fifth is extracted by so-called Artisanal miners, who dig by hand in deep tunnels. Artisanal mines are more likely to employ child labour, according to Amnesty.

全球一半以上的钴来自刚果民主共和国，而该国多达五分之一的钴是由手工采矿者在地下深处的矿井巷道中手工挖掘开采出的。大赦国际表示，手工采矿的矿场更有可能雇用童工。

Cobalt prices have risen by more than 80 per cent this year as carmakers step up electric vehicle production. Material mined in the DRC is largely sent to China for processing.

随着汽车制造商纷纷扩大电动车生产规模，今年以来钴价上涨了逾80%。在刚果民主共和国开采的原料大部分被运至中国进行加工。

The LME notice, sent 12 days ago, said its inquiry was part of a broader push to address responsible sourcing and was “not related to any particular producer or brand”. Two traders said, however, the request came only after they had made complaints to the LME about the traceability of specific cobalt supplies.

LME在12天前发出的这份通知称，这项调查是解决负责任来源的整体努力的一部分，“不针对任何特定生产商或品牌”。然而，两家交易商表示，只是在他们就特定钴供应的可追溯性提出投诉后，LME才发出上述请求。

“[W]e would expect that any specific concerns will be addressed as part of our existing efforts and we look forward to engaging with the market further on this important topic,” the LME email said.

LME在电邮中称：“我们期望，任何特定担忧都将得到应对，作为我们现有努力的一部分，我们期待在这个重要话题上进一步与市场接触。”

The two traders said concerns arose this summer when metal produced by Yantai Cash Industrial, a Shandong-based producer, appeared on the exchange. They said many market participants believe Yantai Cash sources some of its unrefined cobalt from artisanal DRC mines that carry a higher risk of using child labour.

这两家交易商表示，总部位于山东的烟台凯实工业有限公司(Yantai Cash Industrial)生产的钴今夏出现在该交易所，引发各方关切。他们称，许多市场参与者相信，烟台凯实的一部分钴原料来自刚果民主共和国手工开采的钴矿，而这些矿场使用童工的可能性较高。

Concern they might receive Yantai Cash metal has recently caused cobalt on the LME to price at a discount to other sources, traders said. While LME metal must meet certain quality standards, buyers cannot choose the source of the material, which is delivered from the exchange’s own warehouses.

对于钴可能来自烟台凯实的担忧，已导致LME的钴价相对于其他来源存在折扣。虽然在LME交易的金属必须达到一定的质量标准，但买家无法选择材料来源，这些材料是从交易所自己的仓库交货的。

Yantai Cash executives said they have begun an inquiry into the concerns.

烟台凯实的高管称，他们已开始对此类担忧进行调查。

“Some of our customers have asked us to do due diligence investigation on the supply chain to see if [the chain] has child labour or human rights problems,” said Yantai Cash’s deputy head of international trade. “We have started doing that.”

“我们的一些客户已经要求我们对供应链进行尽职调查，以核实（供应链）是否存在童工或人权问题，”烟台凯实的国际贸易副主管表示，“我们已经开始这样做了。”

The LME has broad regulatory control over metal on the exchange, but has no specific rule governing sourcing. Some of the world’s biggest miners including Glencore and China Molybdenum also operate in the DRC using large-scale machinery.

LME对在该交易所交易的金属拥有广泛的监管控制，但对来源没有具体规定。包括嘉能可(Glencore)、洛阳钼业(China Molybdenum)在内的全球最大一些矿商，也在刚果民主共和国采矿，它们使用大型机械。

“We have strict guidelines and criteria for brands wishing to list their products on the LME,” the exchange said. “Any evidence of sub-standard practices that fall short of our requirements would be investigated by the LME and action would be taken.”

“我们对希望在LME挂牌产品的品牌有严格的指导方针和标准，”该交易所表示，“达不到我们要求的、低于标准的做法的任何证据，都将受到LME调查，并采取相应行动。”