In August this year, Japan's hot rolled plate and sheet shipments decreased by 0.2 percent on month-on-month basis, following an 11.8 percent decrease recorded in July from June. While the country's HR plate and sheet shipments amounted to 940,265 metric tons in August, 71.59 percent of shipments were made to the domestic market, while the remaining 28.41 percent were made to the export markets, according to the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) data.
Meanwhile, in August, Japan's HR plate and sheet inventories increased by 10.3 percent over the previous month, reaching 740,090 metric tons, and were up 12 percent year on year. 82.57 percent of inventories were held by steel manufacturers, while 17.43 percent were held by steel traders.
The average domestic price for HR plate and sheet in Japan in August was JPY 87,000/mt ($1,135/mt), decreasing JPY 1,000/mt ($13.05/mt) or 1.14 percent as compared to the previous month, and down 3.33 percent year on year from JPY 90,000/mt.
In the month in question, Japan's HR plate and sheet output totaled 1,009,355 metric tons, increasing by 6.9 percent over July and down 5.7 percent year on year.