In January of this year, Japan saw a 3.6% increase in hot rolled plate and sheet shipments compared to December. This rise brought the total shipments to 627,343 metric tons, down by 7.6% from the same period in 2023, as reported by the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF). Domestic markets received 73.6% of these shipments, with the remaining 26.4% destined for export markets. Additionally, hot rolled plate and sheet production in Japan for the same month reached 702,845 metric tons, marking a 21.0% increase from the previous month but a 6.7% decrease from the previous year.

Concurrently, hot rolled strip shipments in Japan totaled 1.29 million metric tons in January, showing a slight decrease of 0.7% from the previous month but a notable increase of 5.8% compared to the previous year. Of these shipments, 17.6% were directed to domestic markets, while the majority, 82.4%, were intended for export markets. Furthermore, hot rolled strip production in Japan during January amounted to 1.35 million metric tons, reflecting a month-on-month increase of 5.1% and a year-on-year growth of 6.9%.