Japan, Plate Import Increases by 4.6% for Jan-Jun

Japanese plate import increased by 4.6% to 121,963 tonnes for January-June 2008 from the same period of 2007, according to Ministry of Finance. The import increased year-on-year for 3 consecutive months since April. The supply keeps tight due to strong demand from shipbuilding or construction machinery. The import is increasing when domestic makers’ supply is short.

The import increased by 107.9% to 48,260 tonnes from South Korea while decreased by 25.3% to 56,147 tonnes from China for January-June from the corresponding period of last year.

Japanese plate export increased by 10.6% to 1.703 million tonnes for January-June year-on-year. The export decreased by 0.6% to 892,895 tonnes to South Korea while increased by 15.3% to 395,968 tonnes to China.

The import increased by 38% to 24,587 tonnes in June from a year earlier. The export increased by 9.3% to 283,424 tonnes.

See an attached table.