According to the data released by the Japanese Iron and Steel Federation (JISF), Japanese pig iron production in September this year totaled 6.05 million metric tons, decreasing by 17 percent year on year, and down 3.1 percent compared to August. Meanwhile, the country's crude steel production in September amounted to 8.27 million metric tons, down 18 percent year on year, and decreasing slightly by 0.4 percent month on month.
In the first nine months of the year, Japan's pig iron production reached 46.82 million metric tons, decreasing by 29.3 percent, while crude steel production totaled 60.93 million metric tons, down 34 percent, both compared to the same period of the previous year.
In September Japan's steel section production amounted to 463,300 metric tons, down 25.8 percent, its bar production came to 829,600 metric tons, down 14.5 percent, its wire rod output was 145,300 mt, down 29.6 percent, HR wide strip production was 3.5 million mt, down 15.4 percent, and cold rolled wide strip output amounted to 1.76 million mt, down 13.7 percent, all compared to September 2008.
