In October this year, Japan’s cold rolled sheet and strip shipments moved down by 1.1 percent compared to the previous month and increased by 11.5 percent on year-on-year basis, amounting to 404,844 metric tons. 51.2 percent of shipments were made to the domestic market, while the remaining 48.8 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 increased by 1.3 percent compared to the previous month, totaling 652,926 metric tons, and were down by 15.0 percent year on year. 71.1 percent of inventories were held by steel manufacturers, while 28.9 percent were held by steel traders.
In October, Japan’s CR sheet and strip production amounted to 413,422 mt, up by 10.7 percent month on month and up by 6.3 percent year on year.