According to the customs statistics released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance, the country's total iron and steel product exports in August this year amounted to 3.41 million metric tons, increasing by 6.3 percent month on month and up 3.4 percent compared to August 2008, generating a total of $2.78 billion in value. Meanwhile, Japanese iron and steel product imports in August fell by 1.3 percent over July and decreased by 37.8 percent year on year to 361,188 metric tons, reaching a total value of $409 million.
On the other hand, in the first eight months of the current year, Japan's total iron and steel product exports slid 23.7 percent year on year to 20.32 million metric tons.
Regarding Japan's major export markets, in the first eight months of 2009 the country's iron and steel product exports to South Korea totaled 5.96 million metric tons, down 10.5 percent, exports to China amounted to 4.07 million, down 11.6 percent, the export volume to Taiwan reached 1.86 million metric tons, down 31 percent, exports to Taiwan totaled 1.38 million metric tons, down 55.1 percent, while exports to the US came to 734,000 metric tons, down 35.1 percent, all compared to the corresponding period of 2008.
However, Japanese iron and steel product exports to the country's main export markets except China, where a decrease of 1.5 percent was registered, surged in August over July. Exports to South Korea rose by five percent, exports to Taiwan climbed by 22.4 percent, to Thailand by 10 percent and to the US by 5.9 percent. Exports to these markets corresponded to 67 percent of Japan's total iron and steel exports in August.
In the January-August period of 2009, Japan's total iron and steel product imports came to 2.62 million metric tons, down 51.6 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.
In the first eight months of 2009, Japan imported 1.1 million metric tons of iron and steel products from South Korea, down 42.6 percent, 497,400 metric tons from China, down 63 percent and 377,400 metric tons from Taiwan, down 35.7 percent, all compared to the corresponding period of 2008.
Exports | Imports | |||||
August 2009 (mt) | Monthly change (%) | Yearly change (%) | August 2009 (mt) | Monthly change (%) | Yearly change (%) | |
Semi-finished | 605,533 | 2 | 53.4 | 116 | -70.8 | -96.4 |
Bars | 35,788 | 101.1 | -44.3 | 883 | -26.7 | 36.5 |
Wire rod | 37,413 | 6.1 | 12.1 | 24,411 | 10.4 | 220.3 |
Heavy plate | 334,834 | 11.3 | 26.3 | 13,612 | 142.2 | -41.9 |
859,087 | 19.6 | 38 | 67,938 | -2.8 | -55.8 | |
279,745 | -16.3 | 2.1 | 87,500 | -8.3 | -37.7 | |
Galvanized sheet | 344,390 | 3.8 | -27.7 | 23,612 | 7 | -23.3 |
Special steel | 461,633 | 12.3 | -10.8 | 16,307 | 11.6 | -3.3 |