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The nation's crude steel output slipped 1.9 percent to 102.89 million tonnes in the year ended on March 31, posting a nine-year low, as a string of natural disasters and glitches at blast furnaces caused slower production.
"Crude steel output will likely grow back to 105-106 million tonnes this financial year," Japan Iron and Steel Federation Chairman Yoshihisa Kitano told a news conference, citing healthy demand from automobile and construction segments and higher output at some mills that have faced system trouble in the previous year.