Japan Ferrous Scrap Usage Drops by 7.3% in April

Japanese ferrous scrap consumption decreased in 3 months for the first time. The consumption decreased to 4.627 million tonnes by 7.3% including use at converters, electric furnaces and castings in April from March, according to Japan Ferrous Raw Materials Association. The converters’ scrap consumption decreased by 4.3% to 1.196 million tonnes in April from March. The electric furnaces’ consumption decreased by 6.2% to 2.734 million tonnes. The scrap consumption by castings and other industry decreased by 5.8% to 577,000 tonnes. The scrap supply increased by 5.4% to 4.996 million tonnes in April from March, which increased for 3 consecutive months. The scrap supplies from steel plants decreased by 5.5% to 1.325 million tonnes while the supply from market including import increased by 6.7% to 3.561 million tonnes.