Japan BF mills’ FY20 steel output falls at all works

The COVID-19 outbreak’s impact on the Japanese economy during fiscal 2020 (April 2020-March 2021) hit every production base at all three of the country’s integrated mills, newly-released data from mills published this week show. Most apparent are the drops at those works where blast furnaces were banked when steel demand tumbled, industry watchers noted.

Japan’s integrated mills usually release their total crude steel output volumes for the previous fiscal year each May but don’t table their output by works until summer, Mysteel Global notes. At Nippon Steel, Japan’s largest integrated mill, large double-digit drops were seen at works which had blast furnaces banked or units stopped for