Domestic steel production up slightly

After a three-week slump, domestic raw steel production increased slightly last week. U.S. mills produced an estimated 1,872k tons at an 80.4 percent utilization rate, according to Majestic Steel's recent CORE Report. That number is up from 1,867k tons and an 80.2 percent rate previously.

From the report:

Production increased in three of the five regions, with modest decreases in the Midwest and Southern regions. Production from the Northeast region increased the most, climbing from 195k tons to 205k tons. Year-to-date production is now 7.2 percent above the same timeframe from last year.

Additional highlights from the report include:

Spot iron ore pricing decreased after a slight increase the previous week.
Zinc pricing ended last week at $2,436/mt ($1.105/lb), up slightly from $2,427.00/mt ($1.101/lb) a week ago. Zinc price has now changed course after dropping seven out of the previous eight weeks and hitting the lowest point since September 2018. Global zinc inventory continues to climb, up 3% compared to this point last year. LME inventory dropped however, sliding from 79,650 metric tons to 76,225 metric tons.
Total carbon steel imports are down for the second consecutive month.

Read the complete report at majesticsteel.com.

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Emell Derra Adolphus has more than a decade of writing and journalism experience. He is senior editor of ENR’s Top Lists and Survey Rankings at ENR magazine and frequently contributes stories on technology, climate resiliency, diversity, equity and inclusion.