Japan Raw Steel Output Decreases by 3.8% M/M in April

Japanese raw steel output totaled 8.988 million tonnes in April, decreasing by 3.8% from March while increasing by 56.7% from a year earlier, announced Japan Iron & Steel Federation on Friday. The production represented year-to-year plus for 6 straight months. The output per day decreased by 0.6% to 299,600 tonnes compared with March.

Converter steel output was 6.997 million tonnes in April, decreasing by 5.3% from March while increasing by 65.2% from a year earlier. Electric furnace steel output was 1.991 million tonnes, increasing by 2.1% month-to-month and by 32.9% year-to-year. By year-to-year comparison, converter steel increased for 6 consecutive months and electric furnace steel for 5 straight months.

Carbon steel production was 6.986 million tonnes in April, decreasing by 3.3% from March while increasing by 47.1% from a year earlier. Special steel production was 2.002 million tonnes, which decreased by 5.4% from March while doubled from a year earlier. By year-to-year comparison, carbon steel increased for 6 straight months special steel for 5 consecutive months.

Production of hot rolled steels totaled 7.866 million tonnes in April, decreasing by 9.9% from March while increasing by 66.7% from a year earlier. The volume represented year-to-year plus for 5 months in a row. Hot-rolled carbon steels totaled 6.24 million tonnes, down by 10.5% month-to-month while up by 57.3% year-to-year. Hot-rolled special steels totaled 1.625 million tonnes, which decreased by 7.8% from March while expanded by 2.2 times from a year earlier.