Japan Rolled Copper Output Ups by 5.6% in May

Japanese rolled copper output increased by 5.6% to 86,190 tonnes in May from a year earlier, announced by Japan Copper and Brass Association on Wednesday. The output increased for 5 months in a row and the growth increased by 0.7 percentage points from April. The output increased due to continuous increase for brass bar, copper strip and phosphor bronze sheet and strip and improving demand for copper strip and brass sheet, of which output decreased in April. The output was also lifted by recovering demand for semiconductor and machinery. The brass bar output increased by 12.5% to 21,603 tonnes in May from a year earlier. The output increased for 6 months in a row and hit the second yearly high in the year. The demand was firm for connector, facilities and semiconductor along with seasonal demand for air conditioner as April. The automobile demand kept relative high level despite of some adjustment. The output of phosphor bronze sheet and strip increased by 21.8% to 5,014 tonnes in May from a year earlier. The growth was the highest in the reported 13 items except for others. The growing demand for automobile and optical communication industry lifted the output. The output of copper strip increased by 4.1% to 20,810 tonnes in May from a year earlier. The output increased for 9 months in row, which was the longest increase period in the reported items. The demand was firm for automobile, digital appliances and connector of semiconductor.