Total demand for steel from Japanese producers was down -3.1% year-on-year to 5.62 million tonnes in February, according to the Japanese iron and Steel Institute (Jisf). However, there was a very slight improvement from January demand once the short month is compensated for, Kallanish notes.

Jisf data show that domestic finished steel buying from reporting companies was down -6.6% from 2014 to 3.48mt. Direct demand from both the construction and manufacturing sectors was down just under 5% y-o-y, while buying from dealers, 70% of which is normally for construction, fell -11.5% to 1.01mt.

Japanese domestic demand has struggled as construction activity declines and tax increases have hit consumption levels, Kallanish notes. The news was not all bleak however. February did see an improvement in buying from January, again when the short month is compensated for.

Domestic buying averaged 124,000 tonnes/day in February, up from 115,000 t/d in January. Only demand from civil engineering bucked the trend, falling to 6,000 t/d from 7,000 t/d. Total direct buying from the construction sector, including civil engineering, increased to 32,000 t/d from 30,000 t/d in January.