It was reported that the Japanese soda ash market is heading for supply rigidity as domestic producers struggle with low profitability resulting from rising fuel prices, high maintenance costs for outdated facilities & investment costs for renovation. Global demand for soda ash is growing for applications including glass & detergents. The USA, Japan's main source of imports, produces 10M/tpa natural soda ash & exports about half of this amount; while its domestic requirement remains flat, demand in Latin America is increasing. Chinese exports to Japan have gone up, but China's own domestic requirements are on the rise & procurement costs are increasing. Japanese producers recently informed customers of price rises, the first time in 2 years. Central Glass announced rises in April 2007, followed by Tokuyama Corp in June.
