Steel Products Prices North America
Steel Mill Utilization Ends the Year Near 75 Percent
Written by David Schollaert
January 5, 2021
Weekly raw steel production by U.S. mills totaled 1,650,000 net tons in the week ending Jan. 2, up 3.1 percent from the week before, which saw some slowing due to the holiday. The average mill utilization rate rose to 74.6 percent, up from 72.3 percent the week prior. Production in the last week of 2020 was still 10.4 percent below the same period in 2019.
The adjusted year-to-date production through Jan. 2 of 1,650,000 net tons compares to 1,841,000 tons and a capability utilization rate of 80.1 percent last year, AISI said.
Following is production by district for the Jan. 2 week: North East, 159,000 net tons; Great Lakes, 591,000 net tons; Midwest, 182,000 net tons; South, 643,000 net tons; and West, 75,000 net tons for a total of 1,650,000. Production was up in all regions by a net total week over week of 50,000 net tons.
Note: The raw steel production tonnage provided in this report is estimated. The figures are compiled from weekly production tonnage from 50 percent of the domestic producers combined with monthly production data for the remainder. Therefore, this report should be used primarily to assess production trends. The AISI monthly production report provides a more detailed summary of steel production based on data supplied by companies representing 75 percent of U.S. production capacity. Capability for fourth-quarter 2020 is approximately 29.1 million tons, compared to 30.4 million tons for the same period last year and 29.4 million tons for the second quarter of 2020.
David Schollaert
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