MoF: Japanese Iron Ore imports rise marginally during Jan-July

By Carolina Curiel (ScrapMonster Author)

September 06, 2016 04:32:31 AM

TOKYO (Scrap Monster): The trade statistics released by Ministry of Finance, Japan indicate that iron ore imports by France edged higher marginally during the month of July this year. The imports during the seven-month period from January to July this year too were up slightly when matched with the previous year.

Japan’s iron ore imports during July this year totaled 10.785 million tons, rising marginally by 1.8% when compared with the exports during the same month a year before. The imports had totaled 10.589 million tonnes during July 2015. The average price of import in dollar terms dropped sharply by 24.5% to $51.11 per ton when matched with the average import price of $67.67 per ton during July last year. Also, the total value of imports dropped sharply by over 35% from Yen 88.165 billion to Yen 56.818 billion.

The largest exporter of iron ore to Japan during the month was Australia. The imports of Australian iron ore by the country totaled 7.226 million tons, accounting for nearly 67% of the total monthly imports. The imports from Australia averaged at $47.37 per ton. The value of imports totaled Yen 35.284 billion. The other key exporters of iron ore to Japan during the month were Brazil (2.706 million tons), India (300,645 tons), South Africa (221,760 tons) and Canada (149,007 tons).

The agglomerated iron ore imports during July ’16 totaled 1.084 million tons, increasing considerably by 47.4% over the previous year. Brazil was the key exporter of agglomerated iron ore to Japan during the month with 965,422 tons. The other main sources of import of agglomerated iron ore by Japan were Ukraine (88,000 tons) and Chile (31,006 tons).

The non-agglomerated iron ore imports by Japan totaled 9.701 million tons, declining marginally by 1.6% from 9.854 million tons in July 2015. Australia was the primary exporter of non-agglomerated iron ore during the month. The imports of Australian non-agglomerated iron ore by Japan totaled 7.226 million tons. The other key exporting countries were Brazil (1.741 million tons), India (300,645 tons) and South Africa (221,760 tons). The average price of monthly imports was down considerably by 27.4% during the month to $47.42 per ton. The non-agglomerated imports were valued at Yen 47.422 billion.

The iron ore imports by Japan during January to July this year totaled 75.009 million tons, declining slightly by 0.3% when compared with the imports during the corresponding period a year before. The imports had totaled 75.229 million tons during Jan-July 2015. The average price of imports dropped significantly by over 32% to $53.20 per ton when matched with the average import price of $78.68 per ton during the initial seven-month period last year. Also, the total value of imports dropped sharply by 37.4% year-on-year from Yen 712.425 billion to Yen 445.709 billion.

The largest exporter of iron ore to Japan during the seven-month period was Australia. The imports of Australian iron ore by Japan totaled 45.043 million tons, accounting for nearly 60% of the total imports by Japan. The imports from Australia averaged at $47.58 per ton. The value of Australian iron ore imports totaled Yen 239.374 billion. The other key exporters to Japan during Jan-July ’16 were Brazil (21.071 million tons), Canada (2.580 million tons) and South Africa (2.328 million tons).

The agglomerated iron ore imports during Jan-July ’16 totaled 8.247 million tons, increasing sharply by 21.3% over the previous year. Brazil was the key exporter of agglomerated iron ore to Japan during this period. The imports from Brazil totaled 6.215 million tons, followed by Canada with 669,512 tons.

The non-agglomerated iron ore imports by Japan totaled 66.762 million tons during the seven-month period from January to July this year, dropping marginally by 2.4% from 68.430 million tons during the same period a year before. Australia was the primary exporter of non-agglomerated iron ore during this period. The imports of Australian non-agglomerated iron ore totaled 44.932 million tons. The other key exporters were Brazil (14.856 million tons), South Africa (2.328 million tons) and Canada (1.911 million tons). The average price of monthly imports was down considerably by 34% to $49.75 per ton. The non-agglomerated exports were valued at Yen 371.005 billion.