On August 7, a survey released by the Ministry of Economy,Trade and Industry showed that Japanese steelmakers plan to increase crudesteel production to 27.07 million tons in the third quarter, up 4.3%year-on-year.

The head of the market research of the Ministry of Economy,Trade and Industry of Japan said: "The plan to increase crude steelproduction is in line with the increase in crude steel sales in Japan andabroad and the improvement of domestic economic conditions, but at the sametime, the impact of the US 232 tariff is unknown. We must pay close attentionto market changes."

Japan's domestic finished steel output is expected to reach15.73 million tons in the third quarter, up 5.6% year-on-year, and a slightdecrease of 0.2% from the previous month. At the same time, Japan's domesticexports of finished steel will reach 7.77 million tons, a year-on-year increaseof 0.5%, and the chain will increase by 6.8%.

A trader based in Tokyo pointed out that Japanese steelcompanies will continue to give priority to domestic demand and limit exportsupply, but due to the recent increase in domestic stocks in Japan, the outputof steel enterprises for export will also increase. In general, Japaneseconstruction steel demand will remain stable, and it is expected that Japanesesteel companies will maintain a high level of production for the next period oftime.