Japan Plate Supply to Get Tighter

Japanese plate supply is expected to get tighter in fiscal 2007 started April. Japanese integrated steel makers expect the demand for construction machinery will increase by 9-10% from fiscal 2006 and the shipbuilding demand keeps high level. The total plate demand will increase around 5% with higher demand for export, processing and building despite of lower demand for bridge. An integrated steel source said the demand increase could exceed the plate mills expansion. New shipbuilding order receipt hit record 18.1 million gross ton in 2006, according to Shipbuilders’ Association of Japan. The shipbuilding plate demand is expected to be 4.4 million tonnes. Japanese plate shipbuilding plate supply will increase to 4.5 million tonnes after the expansion efforts. Japan Construction Equipment Manufacturers Association reported the shipment value increased by 20.1% in April-December 2006 from same period of previous year. The makers plan to increase the output by 9-10% in fiscal 2007 from fiscal 2006. With higher industrial machinery demand, total machinery plate demand is expected to increase by around 10% in fiscal 2007. Japanese bridge steel demand is expected to decrease to around 400,000 tonnes in fiscal 2007 from 500,000 tonnes in fiscal 2006. However, the construction demand will increase to 7.46 million tonnes from 7.4 million tonnes. Total construction demand including bridge is expected to increase by around 5%.