Japan Copper Rolled Product Shipment Decreases in 1H

Japanese domestic shipment of copper and copper alloy fabricated products decreased by 5.2% to 492,210 tonnes in the first half of fiscal 2007 ended September compared with the corresponding period of fiscal 2006, Japan Copper and Brass Association. The 1H shipment represented year-to-year down for the first time in 2 years. The shipment decreased for all items including export.The shipment for domestic market decreased by 5.6% to 399,349 tonnes in 1H from a year earlier. The shipment downed by 2.4% to 66,821 tonnes for connector pins, mainly for copper and brass strips, when domestic demand for personal computers and cellular phones slowed down. The shipment decreased by 3.3% to 25,975 tonnes for semiconductors, including lead frames manufactured from copper alloy strips. The demand was stagnant mainly for discreet semiconductors. The shipment for construction market dropped down by 23.5% to 6,183 tonnes, decreasing mainly for copper plate used as roof materials.The export decreased by 3.2% to 92,861 tonnes in 1H from a year earlier. The export decreased for brass bar, phosphor bronze sheet and strip with the underlying trend of stronger yen against US dollar.