In August this year, Japan's industrial production decreased by 1.2 percent from the previous month, and declined by 4.7percent compared to the same month in 2018, according to the preliminary indices of the Industrial Production report published by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).
On the other hand, in August, the Japanese iron and steel production index decreased by 7.8 percent year on year, while Japan's seasonally adjusted iron and steel production index was down by five percent in August compared to July. Meanwhile, in August, Japanese producers' iron and steel shipments decreased by 4.2 percent and iron and steel inventories were down by 0.1 percent, both compared to the previous month.
According to the ministry's Survey of Production Forecast in Manufacturing, Japanese industrial production is expected to increase by 1.9 percent in September and to fall by 0.5 percent in October, both on month-on-month basis. Meanwhile, Japanese iron and steel production is expected to increase by 2.4 percent in September and to rise by 0.9 percent in October, month on month