Japan Steel Export Rises by 71.9% in January

Japanese steel export increased by 71.9% to 3.415 million tonnes in January from a year earlier, which increased for 6 months in a row, announced by Ministry of Finance on Wednesday. The export recorded first month to month decrease in 2 months. Asian demand supports the high level Japanese steel export.

The export value increased by 7.6% to 263.359 billion yen in January from a year earlier, which was first increase in 14 months, while the value was lower than December 2009. The export volume increased for all areas except for USA.

The steel import increased by 25.9% to 518,817 tonnes in January from a year earlier, which was the first increase since October 2008. The import value decreased by 16.6% to 54.512 billion yen.