According to statistics released by Japan's Ministry of Finance, Japan's nickel ore imports totaled 479,561 tonnes in July this year up 37.4% MoM and up 3.2% compared to July 2012.

In the first 7 months of the year, Japan's nickel ore imports amounted to 2.96 million tonnes increasing by 14.2% YoY.

In the first 7 months of the current year, Japan's nickel ore imports from Indonesia rose 28.4% compared to the same period of the previous year to 1.45 million tonnes while the Philippines exported 839,240 MT of nickel ore to Japan in the first 7 months down 9.8% YoY. Meanwhile, New Caledonia's nickel ore exports to Japan rose by 40.3% YoY in the period in question to 622,642 MT.