Iron Supplies To Japan Held Up

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30961, 18 January 1966, Page 11

Iron Supplies To Japan Held Up

(N.Z.P.A. Reuter—Copyright) TOKYO, January 17. Leading Japanese steel mills are inquiring into the circumstances which have led to the Australian Government to decide to withhold an export licence for 8,640,000 tons of West Australian iron ore pellet to Japan, a spokesman for the Yawata Iron and Steel Company said today.

Pending completion of the inquiry, the company, which represents six Japanese steel mills interested in the iron ore pellet mined by the Hammersley Iron Pty., Ltd., could not make any comment upon the decision, the spokesman said. He said a formal statement might be issued by the six mills later this week.

The Fuji Iron and Steel Company, another leading Japanese steel mill, said, however, that the six mills were not likely to agree to any change in the contract price for the 8.640.000 tons of iron ore pellet. The Fuji Company said the Australian shipper must have accepted the price because he believed he could make profit at that price and Japanese mills could not see why the Australian Government should consider it too low.

The company also said the Australian Government should take into consideration that the Japanese steel industry was becoming a very large customer for Australian iron ore.