Japan Major 5 Steels’ Raw Steel Output Rises by 4.5% in April

Japanese 5 major integrated steel makers increased the raw steel output by 4.5% to 7.474 million tonnes in April from a year earlier when they tried to increase the high valued steel output to meet strong demand at home and abroad. Their production share increased by 0.2 percentage points to 73.7% of the national output. Nippon Steel increased the output by 7.9% to 2.811 million tonnes in April from a year earlier increasing the share by 0.9 points to 27.7%. The firm increased the output by 72.0% at Nagoya works, which relined the blast furnace last year, while the output increased at Kimitsu and Oita. JFE Steel increased the output by 1.7% to 2.452 million tonnes in April from a year earlier increasing the share by 0.6 points to 24.2%. The output increased by 4.1% at West Japan works while East Japan works reduced the output by 4.2%. Sumitomo Metal Industries increased the output by 7.0% to 1.173 million tonnes in April from a year earlier increasing the share by 0.3 points to 11.6%. The firm increased the output by 10.0% at Kashima works, which expanded blast furnace in May 2007, while the output increased by 5.1% in Wakayama. Kobe Steel kept the output at 690,000 tonnes in April as a year earlier reducing the share by 0.3 points to 6.8%. The output increased by 6.7% at Kobe works while the output decreased by 2.5% at Kakogawa works. Nisshin Steel reduced the output by 0.9% to 348,000 tonnes in April from a year earlier reducing the share by 0.2 points to 3.4%. The output increased by 1.7% at Kure works while the output decreased by 12.1% at Shunan.