News
28/04/25
Japan’s coking coal imports extend downtrend in March
Singapore, 28 April (Argus) — Japan's coking coal imports extended a downtrend
in March, reflecting the prolonged downturn in the steel sector, which has
weighed on raw material demand. The country imported 2.57mn t of coking coal in
March, down by 18pc on the year but up by 5pc from February, according to data
from the country's finance ministry. Shipments dropped by 10pc to 8.15mn t in
January-March 2025 from a year earlier. Top supplier Australia shipped 19pc less
volume from a year earlier at 1.78mn t, and volumes in January-March fell by
18pc from 2024 to 5.59mn t. Arrivals from Canada fell to 192,903t in March, down
by over 60pc compared with a year and month earlier, but January-March volumes
rose by 11pc on the year to 1.22mn t. Metallurgical coke imports rose by around
30pc on the year and month to 78,729t in March, with volumes in January-March
28pc higher on the year at 255,804t. Crude steel production from basic oxygen
furnaces (BOF) rose by 3pc on the year to 5.3mn t. But output could fall in
coming months. Japanese steel producer JFE will suspend operations at one of its
three BOF in the West Japan Works from around mid-May on the back of lower steel
demand in domestic and export markets, the firm announced on 2 April. This is
expected to lower annual crude steel output by around 15pc. Meanwhile, the mill
will proceed to invest in an electric arc furnace (EAF) facility in western
Okayama, which could begin commercial operations in April-June 2028. Other
steelmakers such as Nippon Steel and Kobe Steel have also been making the shift
from BOF to EAF. The Argus premium low-volatile hard coking coal price fob
Australia averaged $174.84/t in March, down by 7pc from February. By Xiuqi Huang
Japan's coal imports Origin Mar 25 Mar 24 y-o-y ± % Feb 25 m-o-m ± % Jan-Mar
2025 Jan-Mar 2024 y-o-y ± % Coking coal ('000t) Australia 1,781 2,206 -19 1,522
+17 5,589 6,780 -18 Canada 193 493 -61 554 -65 1,221 1,103 +11 US 297 215 +38
252 +18 743 848 -12 Indonesia 298 230 +29 85 +249 495 329 +50 Colombia 0 0 n/a
25 -100 25 0 n/a Others 0 0 n/a 0 n/a 80 48 +67 Total 2,569 3,144 -18 2,438 +5
8,153 9,109 -10 Met coke (t) China 74,633 57,426 +30 56,445 +32 222,202 188,235
+18 Others 4,096 4,069 +1 3,713 +10 33,602 11,323 +197 Total 78,729 61,495 +28
60,158 +31 255,804 199,558 +28 Source: Japan Finance Ministry Send comments and
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