Japan Cemented Carbide Tool Shipment Levels Off in April

Japanese domestic shipment value of cemented carbide tools was 22.5 billion yen in April, which increased by 90% from a year earlier and exceeded 20 billion yen for 3 months in a row, according to Japan Cemented Carbide Tool Manufacturers’ Association. Tooling demand is steady along output recovery of car and electric appliance makers. Meanwhile, the shipment value represented 1.8% month-to-month decrease in April. The shipment recovery has recently slowed down. Compared with April 2008 before global economy deterioration, the shipment value has returned to 70% level.

The shipment value of cutting tools was 16.9 billion yen in April, which doubled from a year earlier while increased slightly from the previous month. The shipment volume of insert chips, the main item, was 22.057 million pieces in April, more than double from a year earlier while showed 0.8% decline from the previous month. The shipment volume exceeded 20 million pieces for 2 months in a row and represented more than 90% level compared with April 2008. The demand seems to be pulled up by export.

The total export value represented above 6 billion yen for 2 months in a row and more than 80% level compared with April 2008. Offshore demand seems active rather than the domestic demand.