Japan Stainless Steel Import Increases by 13% in 2011

Japanese stainless steel import increased by 13.0% to 189,263 tonnes in 2011 from 2010, according to Ministry of Finance. The import increased by 13.5% for flat rolled stainless steel. The import increased by 33.4% for welded stainless steel pipe and by 30.3% for seamless pipe. The import increased by 9.8% for stainless bar and by 10.1% for stainless wire. The import increased from South Korea and Taiwan under high yen rate when offshore stainless steel makers increased production capacity.

The flat rolled stainless steel import increased for 2 years in a row through 2011. The volume was 156,308 tonnes in 2011 when the import increased by 10.2% to 128,224 tonnes from South Korea from 2010.

The flat rolled stainless steel import increased by 15.4% to 69,246 tonnes for hot rolled flat steel in 2011 from 2010. The import increased by 12.0% to 87,057 tonnes for cold rolled sheet.

The hot rolled flat stainless steel import increased by 16.1% to 52,851 tonnes for coil with 600 millimeters or more width in 2011 from 2010. The import increased by 12.3% to 15,650 tonnes for products with 3 mm or more thick. The cold rolled sheet import increased by 14.5% to 9,605 tonnes for products with 3 mm or more thick and 600 mm or more width. The import increased by 11.5% to 71,599 tonnes for products with less than 3 mm thick.