According to the customs statistics released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance, Japan's iron and steel product exports in August this year amounted to 3.68 million metric tons, increasing by 5.6 percent compared to the same month of 2011 and down slightly by 0.4 percent month on month, while Japan's steel imports totaled 663,272 metric tons, with a month-on-month decrease of 3.1 percent and a year-on-year decrease of 2.36 percent.
Regarding Japan's major steel export markets, in August the country's steel exports to South Korea totaled 698,547 mt, down nine percent, while steel exports to China decreased by seven percent to 527,124 metric tons; the export volume to Taiwan amounted to 297,121 metric tons, down 0.6 percent; exports to Thailand totaled 489,165 metric tons, down 4.6 percent; while exports to the US fell to 186,232 metric tons, decreasing by 7.45 percent, all compared to the previous month.
In August, Japan imported 224,922 metric tons of steel from South Korea, down 16 percent, it imported 29,923 metric tons from China, down by 24 percent, while imports from Taiwan rose to 71,470 metric tons, increasing by seven percent, all compared to the previous month.
Exports | Imports | |||||
August 2012 (mt) | Change m-o-m (%) | Change y-o-y (%) | August 2012 (mt) | Change m-o-m (%) | Change y-o-y (%) | |
Semi-finished | 520,902 | 1.1 | 35.4 | 23,716 | 82.2 | 81.5 |
Bars | 25,966 | 37.4 | -0.8 | 3,199 | -0.2 | 39.1 |
47,705 | 11.2 | -12.35 | 14,055 | -25.9 | -7.6 | |
Heavy plate | 302,270 | -15.8 | 6.4 | 37,977 | -10 | 31.4 |
887,548 | 0.2 | 12.1 | 137,508 | -8.8 | -11.9 | |
309,453 | 10.7 | -9.5 | 70,515 | -18.8 | -8.6 | |
Galvanized sheet | 413,501 | -1.8 | 10.8 | 38,925 | -1.4 | -23.1 |
Special steel | 684,754 | 7.2 | 13.1 | 39,488 | -27.9 | 6.4 |