Steel Mills
Raw steel output falls to close 2023, annual production slightly higher
Written by Laura Miller
January 2, 2024
Raw steel production in the US fell to a 38-week low to close out the last week of 2023.
US mills produced an estimated 1,680,000 net tons of raw steel in the week ending Dec. 30, according to the latest data from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). The mill capability utilization rate was 73.1% for the week.
Output was down 0.8% from the previous week when mills operated at 73.7% of capability. However, output was 6.6% higher compared to the same week last year when mills produced 1,576,000 tons.
Production by region is shown below, with the week-over-week changes shown in parentheses:
- Northeast – 125,000 tons (down 5,000 tons)
- Great Lakes – 545,000 tons (down 6,000 tons)
- Midwest – 183,000 tons (down 2,000 tons)
- South – 762,000 tons (up 2,000 tons)
- West – 65,000 tons (down 2,000 tons)
2023 production
Adjusted raw steel output for the 2023 calendar year through Dec. 30 totaled 88,727,000 tons, AISI said. Annual production was 0.2% higher than the 88,528,000 tons produced during the same period of 2022.
For the year, the mill capability utilization rate was 75.4% compared to 77.5% in 2022.
Output in the last week of 2023 was 5.3% higher than the 1,595,000 tons produced in the first week of the year. Figure 1 shows production trending higher in the first half of the year and then trending slightly lower in the latter portion of the year.
Laura Miller
Read more from Laura MillerLatest in Steel Mills
USW seeks clarity on plans for Granite City Works
The United Steelworkers union has asked U.S. Steel to elaborate on its Granite City Works plans following reports that the steelmaker is ending processing at the facility.
Nucor maintains plate prices, opens October order book
Nucor aims to keep plate prices flat for a seventh straight month with the opening of its October order book.
ArcelorMittal Mexico to import from sister mills as it works to resume DRI production
ArcelorMittal has partially restarted operations at its direct reduction plant in Lazaro Cardenas, Michoacan. An explosion on Aug. 18 rocked the massive steelworks on Mexico’s Pacific coast, impacting production of direct-reduced iron (DRI).
Fall maintenance outages are coming in hot
Labor Day has passed, the sun is starting to set a little earlier each day, and cooler weather has begun to find its way down to many of us across North America. And you know what that means for the steel industry… Fall maintenance outages!
AISI: Domestic steel production ticks up
US raw steel production ticked up in the week ending on Sept. 6 after a decrease the week before, according to the most recent data from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).