Japan Stainless Scrap Export Drops by 54.9% in August

Japanese stainless steel scrap export decreased by 54.9% to 9,990 tonnes in August from a year earlier, which decreased to less than 10,000 tonnes for the first time since November 2008. The export to China decreased to less than 2,000 tonnes, which was the lowest level since July 2005, while the export was as high as 16,000 tonnes in February 2009.

The export to China decreased by 83.2% to 1,332 tonnes in August from a year earlier. The high level export to China supported domestic market price. However, the export transaction is very slow since September when Chinese buyers are reluctant to purchase offshore scrap recently. The export to South Korea also decreased by 38.1% to 8,248 tonnes.

The lower export impacts on the domestic market. A dealer source said the dealers try to ship more scrap for domestic stainless makers instead for export. Higher yen rate is the part of the lower export while the scrap import increases recently due to the higher yen rate.