According to statistics released by Japan's Ministry of Finance, Japan's stainless flat steel exports totaled 63,136 metric tons in May this year, falling by 5.2 percent month on month and down 14.3 percent compared to May 2011.
In the January-May period of the current year, Japan's stainless flat steel exports amounted to 334,920 metric tons, falling by 15.2 percent year on year.
In the first five months of the year, Japanese stainless flat steel exports to China totaled 79,371 metric tons, while exports to South Korea amounted to 77,537 metric tons, decreasing by 16.8 percent and 7.8 percent respectively, both compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. In the January-May period of the year, the country's stainless flat steel exports to Taiwan totaled 41,152 mt, down 17.25 percent, exports to Thailand amounted to 36,174 mt, down 4.2 percent, while stainless flat steel exports to the US came to 14,103 mt, down 20.4 percent, all on year-on-year basis.
Meanwhile, Japanese stainless flat steel imports in the first five months of the year amounted to 59,148 metric tons, falling by 5.1 percent year on year.