According to the data from the Japan Iron & Steel Federation (JISF), Japanese steel exports in September dropped by 6.5% from August and 2.3% down from the same period last year to 3.48 million tons.
Due to the slow demand from Thailand and export restrictions, Japanese mills now prefer to supply domestic customers with firm demand and higher prices.
Oversupply from China and Korea also made the Japanese exports less competitive in Asia market.
Even though the demand from Thailand is firm, the volumes decrease due to slower production from auto-making industry compare to last year. Analysts expect the demand will pick up from Southeast Asia from auto sectors.
Japan’s steel exports reached 21.86 million tons from April- September, up by 1% year-on-year. HRC exports rose 13% to 5.78 million tons due to Japanese mills raised the exports to their downstream plants oversea.
