Iron and steel. (72)
Iron and steel. (statistical code 72): exports in September 2026 were JPY 317,313,807,000 (+1.6% year on year), quantity 2,659,387,992 KG, unit price JPY 119 per KG. Main destinations: Thailand (14.8%), Republic of Korea (14.0%), People's Republic of China (8.7%), Mexico (7.7%), Viet Nam (6.7%). Figures for September 2026 are revised.
Imports in the same month were JPY 88,420,127,000, a trade surplus of JPY 228,893,680,000. (imports: preliminary; exports: revised)
Import statistics for this code
Monthly statistics
| Month | Status | Export value | Quantity | Unit price | Year-on-year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | revised | JPY 317,313,807,000 | 2,659,387,992 | JPY 119 | +1.6% |
| August 2026 | revised | JPY 334,058,604,000 | 2,764,254,735 | JPY 121 | +15.6% |
| July 2026 | revised | JPY 339,642,841,000 | 2,879,020,183 | JPY 118 | +5.7% |
| June 2026 | revised | JPY 345,408,643,000 | 3,015,291,056 | JPY 115 | +15.7% |
| May 2026 | revised | JPY 313,406,519,000 | 2,837,439,976 | JPY 110 | +3.0% |
| April 2026 | revised | JPY 306,864,692,000 | 2,832,963,996 | JPY 108 | -1.6% |
| March 2026 | revised | JPY 323,758,790,000 | 2,950,055,598 | JPY 110 | -4.3% |
| February 2026 | revised | JPY 281,870,650,000 | 2,689,096,707 | JPY 105 | -12.4% |
| January 2026 | revised | JPY 280,844,690,000 | 2,617,909,015 | JPY 107 | -9.8% |
| December 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 328,358,517,000 | 3,118,655,570 | JPY 105 | -8.7% |
| November 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 292,655,672,000 | 2,880,183,574 | JPY 102 | -5.7% |
| October 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 310,764,604,000 | 3,168,172,065 | JPY 98.09 | -1.2% |
| September 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 312,237,175,000 | 3,083,557,332 | JPY 101 | -3.9% |
| August 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 289,006,773,000 | 2,842,503,496 | JPY 102 | -16.5% |
| July 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 321,357,256,000 | 3,132,550,168 | JPY 103 | -17.0% |
| June 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 298,442,366,000 | 2,921,742,922 | JPY 102 | -17.7% |
| May 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 304,378,726,000 | 3,061,633,469 | JPY 99.42 | -18.3% |
| April 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 311,800,613,000 | 3,062,977,483 | JPY 102 | -8.6% |
| March 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 338,369,263,000 | 3,265,075,155 | JPY 104 | -7.3% |
| February 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 321,782,073,000 | 3,010,633,271 | JPY 107 | -5.8% |
| January 2025 | revised (second) | JPY 311,381,144,000 | 2,900,531,368 | JPY 107 | -3.6% |
| December 2024 | final | JPY 359,533,660,000 | 3,397,238,670 | JPY 106 | +2.6% |
| November 2024 | final | JPY 310,208,801,000 | 2,910,045,578 | JPY 107 | -9.4% |
| October 2024 | final | JPY 314,517,944,000 | 2,951,796,206 | JPY 107 | -13.7% |
Subcategories
- Pig iron and spiegeleisen in pigs, blocks or other primary forms
- Ferro-alloys
- Ferrous products obtained by direct reduction of iron ore and other spongy ferrous products, in lumps, pellets or similar forms; iron having a minimum purity by weight of 99.94 %, in lumps, pellets or similar forms
- Ferrous waste and scrap; remelting scrap ingots of iron or steel
- Granules and powders, of pig iron, spiegeleisen, iron or steel
- Iron and non-alloy steel in ingots or other primary forms (excluding iron of heading 72.03)
- Semi-finished products of iron or non-alloy steel
- Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, hot-rolled, not clad, plated or coated
- Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, cold-rolled (cold-reduced), not clad, plated or coated
- Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, clad, plated or coated
- Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of less than 600 mm, not clad, plated or coated
- Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of less than 600mm, clad, plated or coated
- Bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of iron or non-alloy steel
- Other bars and rods of iron or non-alloy steel, not further worked than forged, hot-rolled, hot-drawn or hot-extruded, but including those twisted after rolling
- Other bars and rods of iron or non-alloy steel
- Angles, shapes and sections of iron or non-alloy steel
- Wire of iron or non-alloy steel
- Stainless steel in ingots or other primary forms; semi-finished products of stainless steel
- Flat-rolled products of stainless steel, of a width of 600 mm or more
- Flat-rolled products of stainless steel, of a width of less than 600 mm
- 7221
- Other bars and rods of stainless steel; angles, shapes and sections of stainless steel
- 7223
- Other alloy steel in ingots or other primary forms; semi-finished products of other alloy steel
- Flat-rolled products of other alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more
- Flat-rolled products of other alloy steel, of a width of less than 600 mm
- Bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of other alloy steel
- Other bars and rods of other alloy steel; angles, shapes and sections, of other alloy steel; hollow drill bars and rods, of alloy or non-alloy steel
- Wire of other alloy steel
- 72XX
Long-term trend (from 1988)
Exports in 1988 were JPY 1,421,150,981,000; in 2025, JPY 3,740,534,182,000, about 2.6 times as much.
| Year | Imports | Exports | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Sep) | JPY 812,188,166,000 | JPY 2,843,169,236,000 | surplus JPY 2,030,981,070,000 |
| 2025 | JPY 1,070,897,516,000 | JPY 3,740,534,182,000 | surplus JPY 2,669,636,666,000 |
| 2024 | JPY 1,205,872,442,000 | JPY 4,147,307,812,000 | surplus JPY 2,941,435,370,000 |
| 2023 | JPY 1,169,648,650,000 | JPY 4,283,773,600,000 | surplus JPY 3,114,124,950,000 |
| 2022 | JPY 1,341,424,690,000 | JPY 4,590,273,828,000 | surplus JPY 3,248,849,138,000 |
| 2021 | JPY 956,972,727,000 | JPY 3,816,310,931,000 | surplus JPY 2,859,338,204,000 |
| 2020 | JPY 608,369,772,000 | JPY 2,432,139,673,000 | surplus JPY 1,823,769,901,000 |
| 2019 | Not available (source gap) | JPY 2,844,493,003,000 | Not available (source gap) |
| 2018 | Not available (source gap) | JPY 3,304,120,489,000 | Not available (source gap) |
| 2017 | JPY 825,063,073,000 | JPY 3,138,289,604,000 | surplus JPY 2,313,226,531,000 |
| 2016 | JPY 616,978,504,000 | JPY 2,661,509,644,000 | surplus JPY 2,044,531,140,000 |
| 2015 | JPY 748,404,102,000 | JPY 3,328,223,558,000 | surplus JPY 2,579,819,456,000 |
| 2014 | JPY 901,678,472,000 | JPY 3,535,214,233,000 | surplus JPY 2,633,535,761,000 |
| 2013 | JPY 720,177,402,000 | JPY 3,445,778,042,000 | surplus JPY 2,725,600,640,000 |
| 2012 | JPY 735,264,528,000 | JPY 3,150,320,778,000 | surplus JPY 2,415,056,250,000 |
| 2011 | JPY 905,543,445,000 | JPY 3,357,334,096,000 | surplus JPY 2,451,790,651,000 |
| 2010 | JPY 744,277,065,000 | JPY 3,402,808,704,000 | surplus JPY 2,658,531,639,000 |
| 2009 | JPY 458,152,780,000 | JPY 2,649,358,860,000 | surplus JPY 2,191,206,080,000 |
| 2008 | JPY 1,171,960,985,000 | JPY 4,064,295,615,000 | surplus JPY 2,892,334,630,000 |
| 2007 | JPY 975,633,281,000 | JPY 3,542,327,314,000 | surplus JPY 2,566,694,033,000 |
| 2006 | JPY 714,244,519,000 | JPY 3,020,489,910,000 | surplus JPY 2,306,245,391,000 |
| 2005 | JPY 751,299,547,000 | JPY 2,689,016,740,000 | surplus JPY 1,937,717,193,000 |
| 2004 | JPY 568,949,250,000 | JPY 2,292,420,584,000 | surplus JPY 1,723,471,334,000 |
| 2003 | JPY 358,520,130,000 | JPY 1,821,621,910,000 | surplus JPY 1,463,101,780,000 |
| 2002 | JPY 273,364,290,000 | JPY 1,646,337,202,000 | surplus JPY 1,372,972,912,000 |
| 2001 | JPY 301,380,988,000 | JPY 1,355,822,936,000 | surplus JPY 1,054,441,948,000 |
| 2000 | JPY 371,346,386,000 | JPY 1,396,754,126,000 | surplus JPY 1,025,407,740,000 |
| 1999 | JPY 313,905,843,000 | JPY 1,294,667,424,000 | surplus JPY 980,761,581,000 |
| 1998 | JPY 383,835,139,000 | JPY 1,555,223,950,000 | surplus JPY 1,171,388,811,000 |
| 1997 | JPY 508,665,911,000 | JPY 1,552,844,443,000 | surplus JPY 1,044,178,532,000 |
| 1996 | JPY 455,430,819,000 | JPY 1,342,148,212,000 | surplus JPY 886,717,393,000 |
| 1995 | JPY 540,385,927,000 | JPY 1,357,730,720,000 | surplus JPY 817,344,793,000 |
| 1994 | JPY 403,507,369,000 | JPY 1,193,483,273,000 | surplus JPY 789,975,904,000 |
| 1993 | JPY 441,826,801,000 | JPY 1,245,533,141,000 | surplus JPY 803,706,340,000 |
| 1992 | JPY 456,599,037,000 | JPY 1,286,703,450,000 | surplus JPY 830,104,413,000 |
| 1991 | JPY 729,112,047,000 | JPY 1,312,730,772,000 | surplus JPY 583,618,725,000 |
| 1990 | JPY 655,154,334,000 | JPY 1,338,840,670,000 | surplus JPY 683,686,336,000 |
| 1989 | JPY 692,381,621,000 | JPY 1,561,230,081,000 | surplus JPY 868,848,460,000 |
| 1988 | JPY 600,252,488,000 | JPY 1,421,150,981,000 | surplus JPY 820,898,493,000 |
Some goods moved between chapters with the HS revisions of 1996, 2002, 2007, 2012, 2017 and 2022.
The e-Stat table 'Final Trade Statistics by Commodity and Country (Imports), 2016–2020' (Ministry of Finance Trade Statistics of Japan) lacks data for some commodities from April 2018 to December 2019, so values for this period are not shown. This is a problem in the source data; official annual totals from the Ministry of Finance differ.
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