Steel Products Prices North America

Mill Utilization Inches Up for Fourth Week in a Row

Written by David Schollaert

March 1, 2021

U.S. raw steel production saw a small increase for the fourth consecutive week as domestic mills strive to meet robust demand. Weekly steel production by U.S. mills totaled 1,755,000 tons in the week ending March 6, up 0.3% from the week prior when production was 1,749,000 tons. The mill utilization rate last week averaged 77.4%, up from 77.2% the week before, yet down 0.3% from the same period last year when production totaled 1,761,000 net tons.

Adjusted year-to-date production through March 6 was 16,112,000 net tons, at an average utilization rate of 76.6%. That’s down 7.6% from the same period last year then the utilization rate was 81.5% and production was 17,435,000 net tons, AISI said.

Following is production by district for the March 6 week: North East, 157,000 net tons; Great Lakes, 609,000 net tons; Midwest, 179,000 net tons; South, 740,000 net tons; and West, 70,000 net tons for a total of 1,755,000. Production was up 6,000 net tons compared to the week prior mostly due to a bump in the South.

Note: The raw steel production tonnage provided in this report is estimated. The figures are compiled from weekly production tonnage provided from 50% of the domestic producers combined with monthly production data for the remainder. Therefore, this report should be used primarily to assess production trends. AISI’s monthly production report provides a more detailed summary of steel production based on data supplied by companies representing 75% of U.S. production capacity. Capability for the first quarter of 2021 is approximately 29.1 million tons compared to 30.1 million tons for the same period last year and 29.1 million tons for the fourth quarter of 2020.

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is a senior analyst for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. Based in CRU’s Pittsburgh office, David can be reached at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

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