In August this year, Japan’s cold rolled sheet and strip shipments moved down by 9.1 percent compared to the previous month and increased by 9.4 percent on year-on-year basis, amounting to 376,317 metric tons. 45.7 percent of shipments were made to the domestic market, while the remaining 54.3 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 went up by 9.1 percent compared to the previous month, totaling 700,183 metric tons, and were down by 3.8 percent year on year. 74.4 percent of inventories were held by steel manufacturers, while 25.6 percent were held by steel traders.
In August, Japan’s CR sheet and strip production amounted to 434,480 mt, up by 9.7 percent month on month and by 7.5 percent year on year.