Steel Products Prices North America
March 17, 2020
Raw Steel Production Down for Second Week in a Row
Written by Tim Triplett
Weekly raw steel production saw its second decline of 1 percent or more in the week ending March 14, suggesting that the coronavirus may be affecting steel demand. Production last week totaled 1,878,000 net tons with the mills operating at 80.5 percent of their capability. That’s down 25,000 tons or 1.3 percent from the prior week when utilization was at 81.6 percent. The March 14 week’s production is a 1.8 percent decrease from the same period last year, reported the American Iron and Steel Institute.
Adjusted year-to-date production through March 14 totaled 20,131,000 net tons at an average utilization rate of 81.7 percent. That’s still up 0.4 percent from production in the same period last year when the average utilization rate was 81.6 percent.
