Japan H-beam Export for Korea Surges to $ 580, Jul-Sep

Some of Japanese integrated steel makers reached agreements with South Korean customers to raise H-beam export price by around $ 80 to CIF$ 580 per tonne (approximately 55,700 yen) for July-September shipment compared with the previous quarter. Japanese integrated steels aim to pull up the export price to around $ 620-630 when offshore H-beam market price is surging.

The unit price of Japanese H-beam export was approximately FOB 52,000 yen per tonne in May, according to the trade statistics by Ministry of Finance. The export volume was 18,563 tonnes, 4 times of the previous month. The export increased by 7,692 tonnes from Osaka and by 6,585 tonnes from Sakai in May compared with April. The export for South Korea expanded by more than 10,000 tonnes as total. An officer of Japanese integrated steel maker said the export is expected to increase more.

Offshore wholesalers, mainly in South Korea and Southeast Asia, are offering H-beam with an expectation the demand would grow up along governmental measures of economy stimulation in each countries. The demand is likely to increase not only for high grade H-beam applied to large projects but also for common grade products.

Japanese H-beam makers continue output reductions when domestic demand stays low. Some of integrated steel makers are putting precedence on the export while controlling output as much as the actual demand level for domestic market.