According to statistics released by Japan's Ministry of Finance, Japan's hot rolled (HR) flat steel exports totaled 1.2 million metric tons in April this year, decreasing by 13.1 percent month on month and up 22 percent compared to April 2012. In the first four months of the year, Japan's hot rolled flat steel exports amounted to 5.3 million metric tons, rising by 23 percent as compared to the same period of the previous year.
In April of the current year, Japanese hot rolled flat steel exports to South Korea totaled 312,991 metric tons, rising by 4.5 percent, exports to China came to 405,440 million metric tons, rising 21.1 percent, while Thailand's hot rolled flat steel imports from Japan fell by 16.9 percent, amounting to 138,616 metric tons, all compared to the same months in 2012.