• Skip to main content

    Prices

    March 30, 2015

    Weekly Raw Steel Production at 1.63 Millions Tons

    Written by Brett Linton

    For the week ending March 28, 2015, the American Iron & Steel Institute (AISI) estimated the U.S. steel industry produced 1,628,000 net tons of raw steel, a 0.7 percent decrease over the previous week and a 12.8 percent decrease over the same week one year ago. The estimated capacity utilization rate is 68.9 percent, down from 69.3 percent last week and down from 77.7 percent last year.

    Estimated total raw steel produced for 2015 YTD is reported to be 21,545,000 tons, down 5.7 percent from the 22,848,000 tons produced during the same period in 2014. The average capacity utilization rate for 2015 YTD is estimated to be 73.3 percent, down from 77.1 percent for 2014 YTD.

    Brett Linton

    Brett Linton is a digital operations analyst for Steel Market Update, where he began his career. Linton has been in the steel industry since 2010. He has held roles as a category manager and strategic insights director at Reibus before returning to SMU in 2024. He is a graduate of The University of North Georgia with a degree in Finance and Accounting. Brett can be reached at brett@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-314-0179.

    Read more from Brett Linton

    Latest in Prices

    Plate supply squeeze tightens as demand presses higher

    The domestic plate market is showing few signs of relief for steel buyers. Lead times are stretching well beyond seasonal norms, spot availability has all but evaporated, and mills are drawing hard lines on contract volumes heading into 2027 negotiations. And the supply squeeze will likely intensify in a market that some industry sources say is structurally undersupplied because of stringent US trade and tariff policies. Imports have been arriving in larger volumes, and the expectation is they will continue to tick higher into 2027. The big question is whether those foreign tons will arrive in volumes sufficient to provide the relief steel consumers want.