Japan Stainless Steel Export Drops by 42.5% for Jan-Jun

Japanese Stainless steel products export including long, flat and tube decreased to 415,110 tonnes by 42.5% for January-June from the same period of last year, according to Japan Stainless Steel Association. The export decreased when the demand for stainless steel reduced since the last half of 2008 worldwide. The annual export is likely to lower from the recent bottom in 2007 at 1.284 million tonnes.

The export decreased by 46.6% to 291,968 tonnes for flat products for January-June from the same period of last year, by 65.1% to 94,308 tonnes for long products and by 2.2% to 90,197 tonnes for tube products.

Meanwhile, the export increased by 34.0% to 86,944 tonnes in June from May, which increased for the first time in 2 months. The export increased by 41.8% to 63,940 tonnes for flat products in June from May, by 34.0% to 8,449 tonnes for long products and by 8.0% to 14,555 tonnes for tube products. The demand for stainless products is recovering mainly in China.