Long Products
August 24, 2026
AISI: Domestic production recovers further
Written by Brett Linton
US raw steel production increased last week, further recovering from the four-month low seen in early August, according to recently published American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) data. Production has been historically strong for most of this year.
US steel mills produced an estimated 1,848,000 short tons (st) of raw steel in the week ending Aug. 22, a 15,000 st increase from the previous week (Figure 1). This compares with a six-year high of 1,898,000 st set in mid-May.
Last week’s production was 1.3% above the year-to-date (YTD) weekly average of 1,824,000 st, and 4.8% higher than the same week one year ago. YTD production now totals 61,011,000 st, up 5.6% from the same period of 2025.
The mill capability utilization rate was 80.0% last week, up from 79.4% the previous week and 78.2% one year prior. Capability utilization has averaged 79.0% YTD.
Raw production declined week over week (w/w) in three of the five AISI-defined regions:
- Northeast – 136,000 st (down 4,000 st)
- Great Lakes – 462,000 st (down 17,000 st)
- Midwest – 319,000 st (up 1,000 st)
- South – 866,000 st (up 36,000 st)
- West – 65,000 st (down 1,000 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.
