Fe Scrap Export Exceeds 200,000 tonnes from Osaka Bay in May

Scrap shipment volume from Osaka Bay totaled 233,233 tonnes for January-May. Heavy scrap export was averagely above 38,000 tonnes per month though mix scrap export maintained lag after August 2008. Domestic demand for ferrous scrap decreased due to output cut by electric furnace steel makers. Ferrous scrap export keeps high from Osaka Bay.

The export slightly decreased to 45,607 tonnes in May from April from Osaka Bay while increased by about 4 times from a year earlier. Heavy scrap export was 38,654 tonnes in May. Mix scrap export was 6,953 tonnes.

Local crude steel production and demand for ferrous scrap stayed 40-50% lower level in May from a year earlier. On the other hand, the demand for ferrous scrap in China increased rapidly after December 2008. Consequently, ferrous scrap export is widely increasing from Osaka Bay to East Asia, which is expected to exceed the export volume in 2006.