Steel Division
Ferrous Raw Materials and Minerals Business Unit
IT and Environment Materials Business Unit
Ferrous Raw Materials and Minerals Business Unit
This business unit procures, from various countries of the world, raw materials for special steels, including stainless steels, automotive structure steels, and bearing steels, and steadily supplies them to Japanese steelmakers.
Stainless and special steels are used extensively in industrial facilities, household electric appliances, and automotive parts and components as materials sustaining people's affluent lives. The Japanese people depend on resources-rich foreign countries for most of the materials for these steels, which are imported across the sea into our country. This business unit has for its customers leading Japanese steelmakers that rank high in the world in terms of quality. This unit is a group of people who gather the most up-to-date market information through our overseas network and overseas partners and busily search for the best-quality products around the world in order to meet the enormous raw-material needs of our customers.
When it comes to countries rich in iron and steel resources, such as iron ores, coal, and cokes, most people might think of South America, Australia, and South Africa. This business unit's approach to search for these resources is a little different. Ferrochromium, the mainstay of this business unit, is an indispensable raw material for stainless steels. In the 1980s, we began to explore the vast Ural Mountains in Russia and the Steppes in Kazakhstan for resources, being the first Japanese trading company to do so. Later on, we witnessed major changes of the times in that region: the collapse of the Soviet Union and the financial crisis in Russia. In recent years, the volume of our imports of ferrochromium produced in Russia and Kazakhstan has been growing remarkably, backed by the outstanding competitive power and incomparably high quality of this product, which can be regarded as "a product of our enthusiasm."
Given the recent rapid increase in demand for iron and steel products in East Asia, particularly in China, the world's demand for iron and steel materials is expected to continue to increase in the medium and long terms. To meet that growing demand, we will continue to set foot in various parts of the world and to always work to develop new products. This business unit will pass down to coming generations the know-how it has accumulated over the years, and it will continue to move toward the goals we have set for it, while capitalizing on the advanced special knowledge and rich experience it has accumulated.
[ Main Products Handled ]
High carbon
ferrochromium
Alloy iron devanning
A scene of alloy iron
being handled
Cargo transportation