Japan imported 10.09mn mt of iron ore in March, up 20.4pc from the same month last year, according to the country’s Ministry of Finance data. Imports of non-ferrous ore, however, declined by 6.4pc to 840,000mt during the same period.
In March, Japan imported 641,242mt of iron and steel products, up 9.2pc from the same month of the prior year, while nonferrous metal imports rose by 4pc to 266,936mt in this time frame.
Iron ore imports were valued at JPY128.13bn ($1.18bn) during the month under review, up 57pc from March 2020, while non-ferrous ore shipments were valued at JPY138.45bn growing 24.4pc.
Japan imported iron and steel products worth JPY76.65bn last month, up 13.9pc from March 2020. During the same period under review, the country’s import of non-ferrous metals rose by 18.2pc to JPY194.84bn.
Japan’s imports of motor vehicles in March fell by 6.9pc to 29,193 units that were valued at JPY113.33bn, down 9pc from the previous year.
Non-ferrous exports rise
The country’s non-ferrous metals exports increased by 19.7pc last month to 163,306mt compared to March 2020, with the value of the products’ shipments also increasing by 38.9pc annually to JPY299.18bn. However, its shipments of iron and steel products fell by 9.9pc to 312,000mt in the same timeframe, though their value rose by 1.5pc to JPY299.18.
In March, Japan’s vehicle exports rose by 2.9pc to 504,021 units compared to the previous year with its value rising by 11.2pc to JPY1.06tn.
($1=JPY108.03)