Japan July crude steel output jumps 32.5per cent to reflect demand recovery
Workers control a crane to move a steel coil inside a factory in Tokyo May 29, 2014. REUTERS/Yuya Shino/Files
TOKYO : Japan's crude steel output rose 32.5per cent in July from a year earlier, climbing for a fifth consecutive month as industry demand continued to recover from a coronavirus-induced slump, the Japan Iron and Steel Federation said on Monday.
Output, which is not seasonally adjusted, increased to 8.01 million tonnes in the world's No.3 steel producer from a year earlier, but fell 1.3per cent from June.
The strong pick-up came in line with the prediction by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in July that the country's crude steel output was expected to jump 30.1per cent in the July-September quarter from a year earlier.
Japanese steelmakers are also on track for a V-shaped annual profit recovery, as solid global demand boosts prices while higher prices of iron ore and coking coal drive hefty inventory appraisal gains.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Edmund Blair)
