Japan’s iron and steel products imports in June grew to 563,805mt, an increase of 8.6pc from the prior year. Imports of iron ore and concentrates rose to 10.21mn mt, up by 65pc from a year ago, according to provisional data released by Japan’s Ministry of Finance.
In June, the country’s export of iron and steel products also increased to 3.06mt, up by 27pc from a year ago.
Non-ferrous
In June, import of non-ferrous metals rose by 41.4 to 298,781mt compared to the prior year, while imports of non-ferrous ores increased by 19.9 to 1.04mn mt in June.
However, exports of non-ferrous metal products decreased to 124,312mt in June, down by 6pc from a year ago.
Japan’s overall exports increased in June, driven by demand for cars from the US and chip-making equipment from China. Total exports grew by 48.6pc from a year ago, registering the fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth, albeit from a low base of pandemic-hit 2020. Exports grew despite lower car production and exports due to the global short supply of semiconductors. While the island nation’s overall imports increased by 32.7pc from the prior year.