UK, U.S., Japan and Canada to ban Russia gold imports

FILE PHOTO: Newly casted ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are stored after weighing at the Krastsvetmet non-ferrous metals plant, one of the world's largest producers in the precious metals industry, in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia November 22, 2018. REUTERS/Ilya Naymushin

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain, the United States, Japan and Canada will ban new imports of Russian gold as part of efforts to tighten the sanctions squeeze on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, the British government said on Sunday.

The ban will come into force shortly and apply to newly mined or refined gold, the government statement said ahead of a meeting of Group of Seven leaders in Germany on Sunday.