Japan's crude steel production in October fell on the year for an eighth straight month, partly because of lower steel demand from the construction sector.
The country produced 6.9mn t of crude steel in October, down by 7.8pc from a year earlier, according to preliminary data released by industry group the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) on 21 November.
Crude steel production by basic oxygen furnace (BOF) fell by 6.8pc on the year to 5.1mn t, marking the eighth consecutive month of year-on-year fall.
Crude steel output by electric arc furnace (EAF) declined for a third straight month by 10.5pc to 1.8mn t. A double-digit output fall by EAF is partly reflecting the weaker steel demand in the construction sector.
The country's steel demand is heavily dependent on the automobile and construction sectors, and steel products for each industry are generally produced using the BOF and EAF methods respectively.
Booked orders of ordinary steel for construction use in September fell by 11.3pc on the year to 651,035t, marking the fourth consecutive month of year-on-year decline, according to the separate data released by JISF on 18 November.
The country's major steel producer JFE on 6 November revised downward its crude steel output to 22.4mn t for the current fiscal year ending 31 March 2025. This is 600,000t lower than its initial figure announced in August, partly owing to weaker than anticipated steel demand from the construction sector, according to the steel company.
Rising material costs and labour shortages are causing delays in major construction projects, JFE said, adding that lower steel demand in the construction industry is "becoming even more obvious.".
| Japanese ferrous output ('000't) | |||||
| Oct '24 | Sep '24 | Oct '23 | m-o-m ± % | y-o-y ± % | |
| Crude steel production | |||||
| Ordinary steel | 5,328 | 5,098 | 5,792 | 4.5 | -8.0 |
| Specialty steel | 1,597 | 1,525 | 1,719 | 4.7 | -7.1 |
| Total crude production | 6,925 | 6,623 | 7,511 | 4.6 | -7.8 |
| Crude steel production method | |||||
| Basic oxygen furnace | 5,101 | 4,794 | 5,473 | 6.4 | -6.8 |
| Electric arc furnace | 1,824 | 1,829 | 2,038 | -0.3 | -10.5 |
| Pig iron production | |||||
| 5,075 | 4,802 | 5,405 | 5.7 | -6.1 | |
| Source: Japan Iron and Steel federation | |||||
| *Based on preliminary data | |||||
