LME, Goldman sued over aluminum storage

HONG KONG — The London Metal Exchange and Goldman Sachs are being sued in a U.S. court over alleged “anti-competitive and monopolistic” behavior in aluminum storage.

The LME’s owner, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd., said in a statement late Sunday that it would fight the class-action lawsuit, which it said was without merit.

Wall Street banks are facing increased scrutiny of their involvement in businesses that store and transport commodities such as oil and aluminum.

The lawsuit was filed Aug. 1 by lead plaintiff Superior Extrusion in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

Hong Kong Exchanges operates the southern Chinese city’s stock exchange.

Last year it bought the LME, which approves and licenses a network of more than 700 metal storage facilities in 36 countries.