Japanese HR flat steel exports fall 10.4 percent in January

According to statistics released by Japan's Ministry of Finance, Japan's hot rolled (HR) flat steel exports totaled 951,867 metric tons in January this year, decreasing by 3.3 percent month on month and down 10.4 percent compared to January 2011.
 
In the first month of the current year, South Korea's hot rolled steel imports from Japan increased by 11.8 percent month on month to 266,934 metric tons, while China imported 119,279 metric tons from the same source, up 1.9 percent compared to December last year. Japanese hot rolled steel exports to Thailand totaled 127,335 metric tons in January, rising by 72.4 percent compared to the previous month.
 
In the whole of 2011, Japan's hot rolled steel exports amounted to 12.4 million metric tons, falling by 4.3 percent as compared to the previous year.