Japan Rolled Al Production and Shipment Drops in January

Japanese domestic production of aluminium rolled products, including plates and extrusions, dropped by 32.1% to 117,261 tonnes in January from a year earlier while the shipment declined by 30.7% to 122,193 tonnes, according to Japan Aluminium Association. Both production and shipment represented year-on-year minus for 4 months in a row. As to aluminium foil, the shipment for capacitors plunged by 93.1% to 252 tonnes in January from a year earlier.

Aluminium plate production and shipment showed year-on-year minus for 4 straight months. The demand maintained stagnant from foil materials, general machines and exports. Extrusion production and shipment kept year-on-year minus for 24 straight months. The demand from construction market maintained 2-digit decrease and car related demand also dropped by almost 60%.

Aluminium foil demand turned significantly worse in January from foods and daily goods. The export dropped by about 80% year-on-year. Both production and shipment showed year-on-year minus for 4 months in a row.