Japan's iron and steel product exports down 16 percent in Jan-Apr

In April this year, Japan's iron and steel product exports amounted to 2.73 million metric tons, falling by 1.3 percent month on month and down by 3.5 percent year on year, while Japan's iron and steel product imports totaled 802,227 metric tons, with a month-on-month increase of 8.1 percent and a year-on-year growth of 10.6 percent, according to the customs statistics released by the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF).

In the January-April period of this year, Japanese iron and steel product exports amounted to 10.33 million mt, declining by 16 percent, while Japanese iron and steel product imports came to 3.1 million mt, rising by 11.4 percent, both compared to the same period of 2018. 

Regarding Japan's major iron and steel product export markets, in the first four months of the year, the country's iron and steel exports to South Korea totaled 1.68 million metric tons, down 7.6 percent, while exports to China decreased by 16.9 percent to 1.55 million metric tons, the export volume to Taiwan amounted to 592,928 metric tons, down by 35.4 percent, exports to Thailand totaled 1.64 million metric tons, falling by 11.2 percent, while exports to the US totaled 496,757 metric tons, falling by 11 percent, all year on year. 

In the given period, Japan imported 1.36 million metric tons of iron and steel products from South Korea, up four percent, it imported 614,534 metric tons from China, increasing by 47.6 percent, while imports from Taiwan rose by 2.8 percent to 366,571 metric tons, all compared to the same period of last year.