Japan's crude steel production in November rose for a ninth straight month on a year-on-year basis on firm demand from the country's manufacturing sector and easing COVID-19 restrictions but looking ahead, the Japan Iron & Steel Federation expects 2022 output to be flat from 2021.

          November output rose 10.7% year on year at 8.04 million mt but fell 2.2% from October following a 1% gain from September, JISF data released Dec. 22 showed.

          JISF expects domestic demand for steel to increase from 2021, mainly from the manufacturing sector, however, it expects crude steel production in 2022 to be flat from 2021 due to risks posed from new coronavirus strains, disruptions in the global supply chain, trade friction between the US and China, and market trends in the Chinese economy.

          Crude steel production per day in November averaged 268,000 mt, an increase of 1% from 265,000 mt in October, the JISF said.

          Of the overall crude steel output, conventional blast furnaces contributed 5.83 million mt, up 10.3% versus November 2020 but down 3% month on month. Electric arc furnaces accounted for 2.21 million mt, up 11.7% year on year but down 0.2% month on month.

          With the November data summed up, Japan's crude steel production over the first 11 months of 2021 was 88.40 million mt, up 16.8% year on year.

          Downstream, in finished steel production, 5.56 million mt of hot-rolled products were manufactured in November, up 7.7% annually but down 1.6% monthly.

          Of the hot-rolled products, wide strips accounted for most of the production at 3.30 million mt, up 7.9% year on year and flat from October.

-- Steel Business Briefing