Japan's Iron Ore Imports Double Year-on-Year

Japan Imports 11.87mn Tonnes of Iron ore

According to the provisional data released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance, the country imported 11.87 million metric tons of iron ore and concentrate in March this year - an increase of 102.7 percent year on year.

The value of these imports was JPY 78.83 billion ($836.48 million) in value, up 31.8 percent compared to March 2009. The average iron ore import price in March this year stood at JPY 6,641/mt ($70.46/mt)

In the Japanese fiscal year 2009-10 (April 2009-March 2010), Japan imported 115.2 million metric tons of iron ore and concentrate, at a cost of JPY 813.08 billion ($8.63 billion), a decrease of 10.3 percent and 38.8 percent respectively.

In FY 2009-10, the average import price of iron ore was JPY 7,058/mt ($75/mt on current exchange rate).