FOCUS: Japan Al demand keeps falling; 2019 imports drop 11.2% y-o-y

Japan's demand for aluminium is the highest in Asia but recently has been falling fast due to a slowing economy and the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak affecting downstream demand.

Japan is the biggest buyer of aluminium in Asia, typically ratcheting up to more than 1 million tonnes per year of imports, but the industry is now experiencing a period of increasingly weak demand. 
According to the latest statistics released by the Japan Aluminium Association, imports for unwrought and unalloyed aluminium came to 1.418 million tonnes in 2019, contracting 11.2% year on year from 1.596 million tonnes in 2018.
In end-uses, demand for aluminium hit 4.18 million tonnes in 2019, compared to 4.288 million tonnes in 2018, down by 2.4% year on year.

Market sources that Fastmarkets spoke to say 2020 could see a similar fall in aluminium demand, or more, due to the coronavirus spread exacerbating a situation where prices for the...

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