Market Data
December 30, 2025
US steel mills slow output during end-of-year holiday season
Written by Laura Miller
The latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) data confirms that US steel mills have pulled back production during the end-of-year holiday season. Still, year-to-date figures show higher output and utilization rates compared with last year.
Raw steel output from American steel mills dipped for a second week, reaching an estimated 1,695,000 short tons in the week ended Dec. 27. This was a 1.7% drop from the previous week’s production of 1,725,000 st, but a 1.8% rise from the same week in 2024. YTD, weekly output has averaged 1,727,000 st.
US mills operated at 74.0% of capability during the week. This compares with a US mill capability utilization rate of 75.3% in the week prior and 75.0% a year earlier.
AISI said adjusted year-to-date production reached 89,301,000 st with a capability utilization rate of 76.7%. YTD output is 3.4% higher year over year, while utilization increased 1.3 percentage points from last year.
Raw production declined in four of the five AISI-defined regions:
- Northeast – 108,000 st (down 5,000 st)
- Great Lakes – 485,000 st (up 9,000 st)
- Midwest – 259,000 st (down 1,000 st)
- South – 781,000 st (down 31,000 st)
- West – 62,000 st (down 2,000 st)
Editor’s note: The raw steel production tonnage provided in this report is estimated and should be used primarily to assess production trends. The graphic included in this report shows unadjusted weekly data. The monthly AISI “AIS 7” report is available by subscription and provides a more detailed summary of domestic steel production.
