Tokyo – Polyurethane foam production in Japan rose by 35.2% in May 2021 compared with May 2020. This accelerates the growth trend seen in April.
In total, Japan produced 12.2 kT of flexible and rigid polyurethane in the month. This compares with 9.1 kT in May 2020.
Cumulatively, Japan has generated 74.3 kT of foam this year. This is up by 9.9%, or 6.7 kT, on this stage last year.
The country produced 7.8 kT of flexible foam in the month. It represents an increase of 41.0% on the 5.5 kT produced in May 2020.
Looking at the year to date, flexible foam production has reached 48.9 kT. This is a rise of 8.6% or 4.6 kT on the amount produced by this stage last year.
The country's rigid foam production in May grew by 26.3% between 2020 and 2021. In the most recent month, it stood at 4.5 kT. This is 933 tonne more than last year.
Taking the year so far, rigid foam production is up by 8.3%. It currently stands at 25.4 kT, which is more than production at this stage last year by 1.9 kT.
Numbers are collated by MITI, the Japanese trade ministry, and there is a lag while the data is checked.
