In December last year, Japan’s cold rolled sheet and strip shipments moved up by two percent compared to the previous month and decreased by 4.5 percent on year-on-year basis, amounting to 383,088 metric tons. 49.7 percent of shipments were made to the domestic market, while the remaining 50.3 percent were made to the export markets, according to the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) data.
Meanwhile, in the given month, Japan’s CR sheet and strip inventories decreased by 6.6 percent compared to the previous month, totaling 613,291 metric tons, and were up by 1.3 percent year on year. 71.0 percent of inventories were held by steel manufacturers, while 29.0 percent were held by steel traders.
In December, Japan’s CR sheet and strip production amounted to 339,392 mt, down by 4.9 percent month on month and by 10.6 percent year on year.