Tokyo Steel, Japan’s leading electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker, said it will keep product prices unchanged for September, marking the fourth straight month of no adjustments.
HRC remains at JPY 89,000 (USD 603) per ton, pickled and oiled coils at JPY 95,000 (USD 644), and coated coils at JPY 121,000 (USD 820). In long products, rebar stays at JPY 85,000 (USD 576), while H-beams hold at JPY 112,000 (USD 759) a ton.
The company cited lingering global uncertainties, including unresolved U.S.-China tariff negotiations, geopolitical tensions, and protectionist policies, which have left international markets in a wait-and-see mode. Weak trade volumes and low product prices are pressuring steelmakers’ profitability, prompting production cuts in some regions. Hopes for further economic stimulus and Chinese output reductions support expectations of eventual recovery.
Domestically, construction demand remains subdued due to labor shortages that constrain capacity, especially for small and mid-sized projects. While inventories are low, cargo movement is sluggish. Tokyo Steel expects conditions to improve as large redevelopment and logistics projects progress.
In the manufacturing sector, demand for steel plates is muted amid trade uncertainties, though equipment-related industries are seeing firm demand from telecom infrastructure rebuilding, logistics expansion, and digital transformation at manufacturing bases.
From September, the premium for its “almost zero” low-CO2 steel will be reduced by JPY 100, to JPY 5,900 (USD 40) per ton, to make decarbonized steel more affordable.
Given these conditions, Tokyo Steel said it will maintain current prices “to help the market bottom out.”
1 USD / 147.6 JPY
