Japan’s imports of copper scrap in January dropped by 31.5pc on sluggish demand for copper products in the global and domestic markets, according to Davis Index analysis.
Japan imported 16,142mt of copper scrap in January, down by 7,439mt from 23,581mt in Jan 2018. Imports dropped as Japan’s output of copper products fell in 2019 due to weak global demand for semiconductors and a drop in China’s automobile sales. In 2019, Japan’s output of rolled copper products fell by 5.9pc, the output of copper rods fell by 8.5pc and copper wires production fell by 18pc from the previous year.
The US continued to be the top supplier of copper scrap to Japan in January. Exports from the US, however, fell by 40pc or 3,663mt to 2,420mt from the prior-year period. Exports from other countries also fell in January. Japan imported 2,310mt of copper scrap from Thailand, down by 22pc and 2,281mt from Saudi Arabia, down by 18pc from Jan 2018.
Japan is one of the top five Asian importers of copper scrap.