According to the customs statistics released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance, Japan's steel exports in July this year amounted to 3.3 million metric tons, decreasing by 5.3 percent month on month and decreasing by 0.4 percent compared to the same month last year, while Japan's steel imports hit 672,909 metric tons, with a month-on-month decrease of 8.6 percent and a year-on-year increase of 4.7 percent.
Regarding Japan's major steel export markets, in July the country's steel exports to South Korea totaled 722,101 mt, down 7.1 percent; exports to China decreased also by 7.1 percent to 541,602 metric tons; the export volume to Taiwan amounted to 265,557 metric tons, down 8.6 percent; exports to Thailand totaled 402,966 metric tons, up 10.1 percent; while exports to the US came to 146,448 metric tons, decreasing by 19.4 percent, all compared to the previous month.
In July this year, Japan imported 271,848 metric tons of steel from South Korea, up 16.9 percent, it imported 115,924 metric tons from China, climbing by 3.1 percent, while imports from Taiwan came to 75,786 metric tons, increasing by 4.3 percent, all compared to June.
Exports | Imports | ||||||
July 2011 (mt) | Change m-o-m (%) | Change y-o-y (%) | July 2011 (mt) | Change m-o-m (%) | Change y-o-y (%) | ||
Semi-finished | 453,612 | 5 | 37.6 | 8,562 | -6.2 | 245.7 | |
Bars | 31,041 | 10 | 64.6 | 2,060 | 75.3 | 4.1 | |
39,558 | -21.8 | 5.1 | 17,444 | -45.5 | -49.2 | ||
Heavy plate | 242,628 | -29.7 | -19.4 | 32,067 | -34.8 | 68.4 | |
654,711 | -11.9 | 0.43 | 125,586 | -20.34 | -11.48 | ||
322,644 | -3.44 | 0.32 | 74,693 | -7.7 | -11.64 | ||
Galvanized sheet | 416,573 | -1.6 | -15.2 | 50,924 | 17.7 | 67.6 | |
Special steel | 646,929 | 2.5 | -1.1 | 28,033 | -26.7 | 6.2 | |