Japan Carbon Steel Order Drops by 3% in 2011

Japan Iron and Steel Federation announced on Monday Japanese carbon steel order receipt decreased by 3% to 68.89 million tonnes in 2011 from 2010. The order decreased for the first time in 2 years. The order decreased to less than 70 million tonnes in 2011 as 2009 due to higher yen rate. The domestic order was 43.68 million tonnes as 2010 level while the order decreased by 7.9% to 25.03 million tonnes for export, which decreased for the first time in 3 years.

The total order was recent peak at 76.91 million tonnes in 2007. The order decreased to 60.87 million tonnes in 2009 from 74.98 million tonnes in 2008 due to economy slump after Lehman Shock. The order increased to 71.03 million tonnes in 2010.

The domestic order increased by 1.9% to 10.33 million tonnes for construction in 2011 from 2010. The order decreased by 5.1% to 20.9 million tonnes for manufacturing.

The total order decreased by 7.4% to 5.886 million tonnes in December from a year earlier. The order decreased for 3 months in a row. The domestic order increased by 0.1% to 3.783 million tonnes, which increased for the first time in 2 months. The order decreased by 18.4% to 2.103 million tonnes for export, which decreased for 4 months in a row.