According to the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF), Japan's crude steel production totaled 7.24 million tons in April this year, sliding by 3.3% compared to the previous month and by 3% from the year-ago level.

Among them, the output from blast furnaces was 5.27 million tons and that from electric furnaces was 1.97 million tons, falling by 3.4% and 2.4% year on year, respectively.

In the first four months of this year, Japan produced a total of 28.86 million tons of crude steel, a year-on-year decline of 5.3%.

Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) expected Japan’s crude steel production to reach 21.92 million tons in the second quarter, 4.6% lower than the year-ago output.