Trade Cases

Raw Steel Production Edges Up 0.9%: AISI

Written by David Schollaert

June 26, 2023

Raw steel production by US mills moved higher again last week, gaining ground for the second straight week, according to data released by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) on Monday, June 26.

Domestic production stood at 1,758,000 net tons during the week ended June 24, up 0.9% from 1,743,000 tons the previous week. Production is up 1.2% from the same period last year, when output was 1,738,000 tons.

The mill capability utilization rate was 78.1% last week, up from 77.5% a week earlier. Usage is down, however, from the same week of 2022 when the rate was 79.6%.

AISI said that adjusted year-to-date production through June 24 was 42,486,000 tons at a capability utilization rate of 75.8%. This is down 2.9% from the year-ago period when 43,743,000 tons were produced with an overall capability utilization rate of 80.3%.

Production by region for the week ending June 24 is below. (Note: week-over-week changes are in parentheses.)

  • Northeast – 140,000 tons (down 2,000 tons)
  • Great Lakes – 571,000 tons (up 7,000 tons)
  • Midwest – 216,000 tons (up 2,000 tons)
  • South – 766,000 tons (up 6,000 tons)
  • West – 65,000 tons (up 2,000 tons)

RawSteel 0620

Note: The raw steel production tonnage provided in this report is estimated. The figures are compiled from weekly production tonnages provided by approximately 50% of the domestic production capacity combined with the most recent monthly production data for the remainder. Therefore, this report should be used primarily to assess production trends. The AISI production report “AIS 7,” published monthly and available by subscription, provides a more detailed summary of steel production based on data supplied by companies representing 75% of US production capacity.

By David Schollaert, david@steelmarketupdate.com

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief 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. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

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