Japan's crude steel output falls again YoY in April

Weak demand both at home and abroad saw crude steel output in Japan fall again during April, dipping by 3.3% from March and by 3.1% from April last year to 7.24 million tonnes, new data from the Japan Iron & Steel Federation (JISF) show. The result marked the 16th consecutive on-year fall, the Federation noted, acknowledging that output levels this month will likely be about the same.

Domestic production of automobiles is gradually recovering, but demand for indirect exports and construction is sluggish and production adjustments continue, the Federation said. Orders for construction applications and manufacturing – other than automobiles and shipbuilding – are still sluggish, and overseas markets are expected to continue to soften due