It is understood that Japan's steel exports are expected toachieve year-on-year growth in 2018, which is also due to increased demand inthe manufacturing and export sectors, and some steel production facilities haveresumed production.

According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry(METI), Japan's steel demand in the first quarter of April 2018 (April-June)may increase by 1.8% year-on-year. METI said that steel demand growth in thequarter will be mainly due to increased steel demand in the manufacturing andexport sectors. The increase in production in industrial machinery and otherrelated fields has led to an increase in demand for steel in the manufacturingsector. On the other hand, the domestic shipbuilding industry will continue tobe in a state of sluggishness, with production of motor vehicles and electricalmachinery showing a seasonal decline before the end of the fiscal year endingin March. At the same time, with the resumption of production of some steelproduction facilities in Japan, Japan's steel exports are also expected toachieve year-on-year growth.

In addition, METI also predicts that Japan's demand for crudesteel in the April-June quarter is expected to increase by 0.9% year-on-year to26.34 million tons. However, compared with the demand in the previous quarter,the estimated demand fell by 0.9%.