Data from the Japanese Electric Wire and Cable Makers’ Association shows that Japanese copper wire and cable shipments rose by 12.1% year-on-year from a year earlier to an estimated 55,300 tonnes in February 2010.
The February figure was up from a revised 53,961 tonnes in January 2010, but still 20% below levels before the Lehman collapse in 2008. The Electric Wire and Cable Makers’ Association said it expected shipments for fiscal 2010/11 to reach 661,000 tonnes, little changed from the 660,600 tonnes estimated for the current year.
An official at the association told Integer Research that “Demand in the auto and electrical sectors has recovered to 80% of levels before Lehman but the construction sector, which is vital for the Japanese cable sector has shown no signs yet of recovery.
Japan’s exports fell slightly in February 2010, but a big rise in auto shipments to the USA showed exports are continuing to pick up on the back of a recovery in the global economy.
