Sumitomo Metals to Shift Sheet Export to High Valued Items

Sumitomo Metal Industries accelerates the shift to higher valued products for the sheet steel export when the firm has no additional capacity to export commodity grade sheet to meet higher demand from manufacturers at home and abroad. The firm negotiates for export sheet price hike with offshore transplants of Japanese manufacturers while Chinese and Asian commodity sheet market price is in adjustment phase. The contrast is getting wider when high valued steel supply keeps tight in Asia while Chinese higher export results in oversupply for commodity grade. Sumitomo Metals tries to improve the stable profitability by increasing high value products portion in the sheet export under the unstable commodity steel market in Asia. The firm tries to keep the hot rolled coil export price for South Korean rerollers for October-December from July-September. Mr. Mitsuru Maruo, executive for sheet steel business of the firm the firm cannot reduce the price when the firm has no additional capacity and reduces the hot coil export to South Korean rerollers to meet higher demand for manufacturers including automakers while loss making South Korean rerollers seek lower price under decreasing Asian commodity grade market. Sumitomo Metals will increase the sheet steel export to offshore transplants of Japanese manufacturers under expanding offshore output by Japanese automakers and demand recovery for appliances. The firm is negotiating with Japanese transplants to increase the sheet export price by around US$ 50 per tonne for October shipment. The firm tries to increase the price to adjust the lower price and to cover higher zinc cost after the price down during downward market earlier the year. Asian supply of high valued sheet steel supply is still tight due to limited suppliers while commodity sheet price is decreasing. Sumitomo Metals tries to increase the high valued sheet export to reduce volatile commodity products in total same volume of sheet export. The firm improves the stable profitability by increasing high valued products under limited output capacity.