According to the customs statistics released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance, Japan's steel exports in August this year amounted to 3.47 million metric tons, increasing by 4.9 percent month on month and decreasing by 2.9 percent compared to the same month last year, while Japan's steel imports hit 680,734 metric tons, with a month-on-month increase of 1.2 percent and a year-on-year increase of 8.7 percent.
Regarding Japan's major steel export markets, in August the country's steel exports to South Korea totaled 693,550 mt, down four percent, while steel exports to China increased by 11.7 percent to 605,110 metric tons; the export volume to Taiwan amounted to 297,808 metric tons, up 12.1 percent; exports to Thailand totaled 469,892 metric tons, up 16.6 percent; while exports to the US came to 154,907 metric tons, increasing by 5.8 percent, all compared to the previous month.
In August this year, Japan imported 308,446 metric tons of steel from South Korea, up 13.5 percent, it imported 113,217 metric tons from China, down by 2.3 percent, while imports from Taiwan came to 84,618 metric tons, increasing by 11.7 percent, all compared to July.
Exports | Imports | ||||||
August 2011 (mt) | Change m-o-m (%) | Change y-o-y (%) | August 2011 (mt) | Change m-o-m (%) | Change y-o-y (%) | ||
Semi-finished | 384,649 | -15.2 | -23.6 | 13,063 | 52.6 | 652.5 | |
Bars | 26,173 | -15.7 | -27 | 2,300 | 11.6 | -7.9 | |
54,427 | 37.6 | 21.1 | 15,223 | -12.7 | -21.5 | ||
Heavy plate | 284,000 | 17.1 | -0.7 | 28,910 | -9.8 | 177.3 | |
791,603 | 20.9 | 19.5 | 156,003 | 24.22 | 12 | ||
322,644 | 5.97 | 3.2 | 77,203 | 3.36 | 102.7 | ||
Galvanized sheet | 463,502 | 11.3 | -11.1 | 50,646 | -0.5 | 52 | |
Special steel | 605,341 | -6.4 | -8.7 | 37,124 | 32.4 | 45.3 | |