Japan Nonferrous Metal Export Rebounds Y/Y in May

Japanese cathode copper export doubled to 43,866 tonnes in May from a year earlier, according to the trade statistics by Ministry of Finance. The export for China almost doubled to 17,013 tonnes. The main reason is that the export significantly decreased in May 2011 when domestic copper smelters were forced low operations just after the Japan Earthquake in March. Meanwhile, some smelters increased cathode production in a recent few months.

Copper scrap export increased by 18% to 22,997 tonnes in May from a year earlier. The orders maintained steady mainly from China though the export slowed down from more than 30,000 tonnes per month in March and April. The export to China increased by 30% to 21,570 tonnes.

The export of rectified zinc with 99.99% or more purity jumped to 2.5 times at 5,763 tonnes in May from a year earlier. The export to China expanded to 2.1 times at 1,169 tonnes. The export to Taiwan increased by 18% to 1,383 tonnes.

Aluminium scrap export increased by 20% to 11,067 tonnes in May from a year earlier. The export to China increased by 50% to 6,678 tonnes, mainly for mixed metal. The export to South Korea was 3,117 tonnes, almost as same as a year earlier.