Japanese Electric Wire Export Rises by 4.6% for 2008

Japanese electric wire and cable export increased by 4.6% to FOB 346.7 billion yen for 2008 from 2007 while the import decreased by 4.8% to CIF 587.9 billion yen, according to Japanese Electric Wire & Cable Makers’ Association. Japanese import has been strongly increasing in recent years. However, wire harness and other electric wire for transport decreased by 1.8% to 342.2 billion yen due to the automobile stagnancy after fall 2008.

The export of electric wire and cable for power increased by 73.6% to 51.4 billion yen for 2008 from a year earlier. The export increased by 65.7% to 22.2 billion yen for Asia and by 46.4% to 2.05 billion yen for Middle and Near East due to the increase of power construction in those regions. The optical fiber cable export increased by 80.6% to 40.1 billion yen.

The Japanese export to China, the largest destination, increased by 2.7% to 79.2 billion yen for 2008 from 2007 while the import from China decreased by 5.0% to 290.5 billion yen.