Japanese steel producers focus on meeting growing domestic demand, operations upgrades

摘要

The growth of steel consumption in Japan seen over the last few years led to reduced steel exports. Though the demandis expected to weaken after the Olympic Games in 2020, market participants mostly believe that mills will continue tosee support from the domestic buyers. Moreover, they will be able to strengthen positions in the export market thanksto building own production bases abroad rather than raising direct shipments. Another main task for the Japanese millswill be upgrades of their facilities to allow them to expand their presence in both local and foreign markets in the future.