In December last year, Japan’s industrial production went up by 1.8 percent month on month and fell 0.7 percent compared to the same month in 2022, 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 December the Japanese iron and steel production index decreased by 0.6 percent year on year, while Japan’s seasonally adjusted iron and steel production index went down by 0.2 percent in the given month compared to November. Meanwhile, in December Japanese producers’ iron and steel shipments moved up by 1.6 percent and iron and steel inventories fell by 1.9 percent, both compared to the previous month.
According to the ministry’s Survey of Production Forecast in Manufacturing, Japanese industrial production is expected to decrease by 6.2 percent in January and increase by 2.2 percent in February, both on month-on-month basis. Meanwhile, Japanese iron and steel production is expected to grow by 3.5 percent in January and by 1.6 percent in February, month on month.
