Japan’s crude steel production in October decreased by 7.8% year-on-year

According to data released by the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) on November 21, crude steel SG345W Grade C steel production in Japan decreased by 7.8% year-on-year to 6.93 million tons in October 2024, marking the eighth consecutive month of decline in crude steel production in Japan. Divided by steelmaking methods, the output of converter steel was 5.1 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 6.8%, and also decreased for eight consecutive months; The steel production of electric arc furnaces was 1.82 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 10.5%, and decreased for three SG345W Grade C steel consecutive months. In addition, the production of hot-rolled steel products has also decreased for the eighth consecutive month, with a year-on-year decrease of 8.3% to 6 million tons. Among them, hot-rolled wide strip steel accounted for 2.84 million tons, accounting for about 47.3%, but a year-on-year decrease of 9.1%.

From the perspective of the annual trend, JISF's October production data shows a pessimistic expectation for the fourth quarter of 2024. The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry predicted on October 10th that domestic crude steel production in the fourth quarter of 2024 would drop to 21.3 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 1.4%. Data shows that as of October, Japan's cumulative crude steel production was 70.21 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 3.7%. During the same period, the cumulative production of hot-rolled steel products and hot-rolled wide strip steel was 61.88 million tons and 29.73 million tons, respectively, a year-on-year decrease of 4.3% and 2.7%.

The main reason for the SG345W Grade C steel decrease in steel production is the weak domestic demand, especially in the construction and manufacturing industries. Tokyo Steel stated on November 18th that the construction industry is significantly affected by labor shortages and rising equipment and labor costs; In the manufacturing industry, there has not been a significant rebound in demand for steel plates.