Steel Products Prices North America
July 2, 2019
Capacity Utilization Dips Below 80 Percent as Mills Tap the Brakes
Written by Tim Triplett
As many predicted, the mill capability utilization rate was bound to dip below 80 percent soon as domestic steelmakers ease back on production to trim supplies in pursuit of higher steel prices. Indeed, average utilization dipped last week for the fifth week in a row, by a full percentage point, to 79.5 percent.
Raw steel production for the week ending June 29 totaled 1,851,000 net tons. Production was down 1.2 percent from the previous week, but was still 2.0 percent higher than the same week last year, reported the American Iron and Steel Institute.
