Japanese steel crisis: Steel production in Japan falls to 56-year low

Japan's crude steel production fell 4% in 2025 to 80.67 million metric tons – the lowest level since 1969. About this reported Nikkei Asia, citing data from the Japan Iron and Steel Federation.

The figure was lower than in 2020, when production fell 16% to 83.18 million tonnes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the World Steel Association, the US surpassed Japan in crude steel production in January-November 2025.

Japan's output for the full year would drop it to fourth place behind China, India and the United States. This is the first time the United States has surpassed Japan's output since 1999.

Demand in construction has declined due to project delays caused by labor shortages. A decline in new car sales in the domestic market has also contributed to lower demand for steel.

China remains a key factor in the crisis. The country's domestic crude steel production fell by 2.9% to 746 million tonnes in January-September 2025. At the same time, domestic demand fell by 5.7% to 649 million tonnes.

China's steel exports rose 9.2% to 87.96 million tonnes in the January-September period, the highest in the period. A slump in China's real estate sector and a general economic slowdown have kept steel cheap. China is exporting more steel, worsening the global market situation.

Steel imports from China to Japan rose 1.5% in 2025. Trade statistics show that Japanese steel exports fell 4.2% to 30.08 million tonnes – the second consecutive year of decline.

Protectionism has become more widespread around the world, especially in the United States. Since around 2024, countries have imposed high tariffs on steel in an attempt to prevent the impact of the Chinese recession on domestic markets. Japan has also been hit by anti-dumping measures that have blocked imports from South Korea and the European Union.

• In November last year, it became known that the US was demanding that the European Union change its rules in the digital sphere in order to reach an agreement on reduction of tariffs on steel and aluminum.