In December last year, Japan’s cold rolled sheet and strip shipments moved up by 0.7 percent compared to the previous month and remained relatively stable on year-on-year basis, amounting to 401,491 metric tons. 53.2 percent of shipments were made to the domestic market, while the remaining 46.8 percent were made to the export markets, according to the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) data.
Meanwhile, in the given month, Japan’s CR sheet and strip inventories decreased by 3.6 percent compared to the previous month, totaling 604,781 metric tons, and were down by 15.3 percent year on year. 72.4 percent of inventories were held by steel manufacturers, while 27.6 percent were held by steel traders.
In December, Japan’s CR sheet and strip production amounted to 379,190 mt, up by 1.4 percent month on month and up by 3.9 percent year on year.