According to the customs statistics released by Japan's Ministry of Finance, Japan's stainless flat steel exports totaled 59,209 metric tons in December last year, falling by 10.2 percent month on month and up 8.1 percent compared to December 2011.
In the whole of 2012, Japan's stainless flat steel exports amounted to 783,512 metric tons, falling by 9.4 percent year on year.
In 2012, Japanese stainless flat steel exports to South Korea totaled 177,626 metric tons, while exports to China amounted to 131,090 metric tons, decreasing by 5.9 percent and 24.3 percent respectively, both compared to the previous year. In 2012, the country's stainless flat steel exports to Taiwan amounted to 114,625 mt, up 9.6 percent on year-on-year basis.