Tokyo — Polyurethane production in Japan rose by 1.4% in April 2019, compared with a fall of 6.5% in March 2019. This was the first month of production growth since November 2018.
The figures come from Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry.
In total, Japan produced 17.q kt of polyurethane in April 2019 This compares with 17 kT in April 2018. The rise in production was 233 tonne.
The country produced 10.8 kT of flexible foam in April 2019 up 5 kT on April 2018. The nation produced 6.3 kT of rigid foam in March 2019. This compares with 6.5 kT in the same month in 2018.
Overall, Japan produced 17.1 kT polyurethane between January and April 2019, compared with 16.9 kT in the same period in 2018. This is a hike of 1.4%.
The country was comfortably producing more polyurethane in the first six months of the year. However, production started to slow over the summer. It fell below the 2017 level for the first time in August 2018, when the country produced 4% less than in August the previous year.
