Japan Plate Export Drops by 27.5% in May

Japanese plate export decreased by 27.5% to 197,774 tonnes in May from a year earlier, which decreased for the first time in 2 months. The export decreased by 28.6% to South Korea. Average export price decreased by about 20% to around 83,000 yen per tonne in May from a year earlier.

On the other hand, plate import decreased by 65.2% to 11,307 tonnes in May from a year earlier, which decreased for 5 consecutive months. The demand for imported products is dropping when the supply of domestic plate keeps excess. The import decreased by 90% from China. Average import price decreased by over 50% to about 56,000 yen per tonne in May from a year earlier.