Japan Stainless Steel Sheet Import Increases in April

Japanese stainless steel sheet import was 10,129 tonnes in April which exceeded 10,000 tonnes for the first time in 3 months, according to the trade statistics by Ministry of Finance. The import increased by 20% to 5,105 tonnes for hot-rolled products in April from March and decreased by 5.5% to 5,024 tonnes for cold-rolled products.The import of cold-rolled stainless steel sheet decreased for 4 months in a row and became lowest in recent 3 years. The import would decrease to below 5,000 tonnes in May. On the other hand, the import of hot-rolled stainless steel sheet continued increasing. The import exceeded 5,000 tonnes for the first time since August 2005.Japanese users recently tend to use domestic cold-rolled stainless steel sheet rather than imports, when overseas market prices are increasing. The market price of cold-rolled products seems to increase impacted by high nickel price as well.