Nippon Light Metal Group Plans to Reduce Al Sales for F2009

Nippon Light Metal plans to reduce the aluminium rolled products sales by 8.3% to 68,600 tonnes for flat products and by 4.7% to 36,600 tonnes for extrusion for fiscal 2009 ending March 2010 from fiscal 2008. The firm forecasts the sales decline under the demand stagnancy while the shipment would recover gradually in second half of the year.

The sales volume of flat products decreased by 16.6% to 74,800 tonnes for fiscal 2008 from fiscal 2007 while the extrusion sales declined by 17.2% to 38,400 tonnes.

Nikkei MC Aluminium, which is secondary alloyed aluminum maker controlled by Nippon Light Metal and Mitsubishi Corporation, estimates the production decreases by 2.0 % to 221,000 tonnes for fiscal 2009 from fiscal 2008. The domestic production would decrease by 5.0% to 143,300 tonnes while the overseas production increases by 4.1% to 77,700 tonnes.

Nikkei MC Aluminium’s production was 225,500 tonnes, down by 24.2% to 225,500 tonnes for fiscal 2008 from fiscal 2007. The domestic production decreased by 25.3% to 150,900 tonnes and the offshore production decreased by 2.6% to 74,600 tonnes. The total production declined by 45.5% to 83,500 tonnes for second half compared with same period a year ago due to the plunge of automobile demand.