China reduced imports of scrap steel

China's scrap steel imports fell more than 9 percent throughout 2015, further declining last December.

Scrap steel imports to China during December last year fell sharply from the previous year. However, imports have increased compared to November 2015. The import of scrap metal into the country in December 2015 amounted to 201,000 tons. Imports were down 9.5 percent year on year. The country imported 222,000 tons of scrap in the same month in 2014. Compared to the previous month, the import of scrap in the country increased by 13.8 percent. China imported 177,000 tons of scrap in November last year. Monthly imports crossed 200,000 tons during December last year, for the first time in six months.

Japan was the largest exporter of scrap metal to China in December last year. Scrap imports from Japan reached 152,000 tons, accounting for more than three quarters of China's total imports during the month. However, imports of steel scrap from Japan decreased by 18.4 percent over the previous year. Hong Kong came in second with 12,000 tonnes. Imports from Hong Kong rose sharply at an annualized rate of 200 percent.

The total import of scrap metal in the country throughout 2015 amounted to 2.328 million tons. Annual imports were down 9.2 percent compared to imports of 2.564 million tonnes in 2014. During 2015, the average monthly import volume was 194,000 tons, with the level of imports remaining below 200,000 tons for the fifth consecutive year.