- Automotive demand remains strong, construction slows
- Special steels hike driven by raw cost surge
SteelDaily: Nippon Steel, a leading Japanese steelmaker, will raise stainless steel wire rod prices for contracts signed between September and November 2025, with deliveries from October to December. Grade 304 prices will increase by JPY 10,000/t, and Grade 430 by JPY 5,000/t, reflecting rising raw material and currency costs.
Special steel grades such as SUSXM7, SUS303, and SUS310S will see price hikes of JPY 10,000/t each, while SUS316, a molybdenum-containing grade, will increase by JPY 40,000/t due to a surge in ferromolybdenum prices. These are the first price increases since last June.
While automotive demand remains robust, construction and industrial equipment sectors are slowing. Semiconductor demand is weaker than expected, and overseas demand shows no clear improvement. Nippon Steel’s Yamaguchi stainless steel plant is expected to operate at around 80% capacity in Q4 2025.
The impact of US tariff policies on Nippon Steel’s markets is still uncertain. Import volumes have slightly increased but remain stable. The company is focusing on expanding sales of high-purity, resource-saving stainless steels and monitoring market dynamics closely amid Asian oversupply.
Note: This article has been published in accordance with a content exchange agreement between SteelDaily and BigMint.
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