Japan Raw Steel Output Drops by 37.8% in January

Japanese raw steel output decreased by 37.8% to 6.371 million tonnes in January from a year earlier, which was the lowest monthly production after February 1969, announced by Japan Iron and Steel Federation on Wednesday. The decrease was 4 months in a row and the widest in the record since January 1949. The production decreased by near 50% for electric furnace steel and special steel.

The raw steel production decreased by 35.3% to 5.087 million tonnes for converter steel in January from a year earlier, which decreased for 4 months in a row. The electric furnace steel production decreased by 46.3% to 1.284 million tonnes, which decreased for 5 months in a row and hit the lowest level since August 1975. The production decreased by 35.1% to 5.178 million tonnes for carbon steel and by 47.6% to 1.192 million tonnes, which decreased for 4 months and 3 months in a row.

The production of hot rolled steel products decreased by 40.7% to 5.428 million tonnes in January from a year earlier, which decreased for 4 months in a row. The carbon steel products output decreased by 38.3% to 4.489 million tonnes when the production decreased by 36.6% to 1.167 million tonnes for long products and by 39.4% to 3.255 million tonnes for flat products.

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry expects the raw steel production decreases by 37.5% to around 19.26 million tonnes in January-March from same period of 2008. The production could decrease to less than 19 million tonnes when Nippon Steel and other makers expand the production cut in February. The national production decreases to less than 20 million tonnes in January-March from 26.4 million tonnes in October-December and more than 30 million tonnes in and before July-September 2008.