U.S. steel industry’s year-to-date capacity utilization holds at 80.1%

The U.S. steel industry’s capacity utilization rate for the year through Dec. 14 held at 80.1% for the second straight week, according to weekly production reported by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).
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The U.S. steel industry churned out 92.6 million tons of steel for the year through Dec. 14, marking a 1.8% increase compared with production during the same period in 2018 (when production reached 90.9 million tons at a capacity utilization rate of 78.2%).
Meanwhile, production for the week ending Dec. 14 reached 1.84 million tons at a capacity utilization rate of 79.7%. That weekly production total marked a 0.9% decrease from production during the same week in 2018, which totaled 1.86 million tons at a capacity utilization rate of 79.4%.
Production for the week ending Dec. 14 rose 1.3% compared with production for the week ending Dec. 7, 2019 (when production totaled 1.82 million tons at a capacity utilization rate of 78.2%).
By region, production for the week ending Dec. 14, 2019, totaled:

• Northeast: 212,000 tons
• Great Lakes: 681,000 tons
• Midwest: 192,000 tons
• Southern: 669,000 tons
• Western: 90,000 tons

Steel prices, meanwhile, have been rising on the heels of price increases imposed by major U.S. steel producers.
U.S. HRC is up 9.59% over the last month, up to $560/st, according to MetalMiner IndX data. U.S. HDG, meanwhile, is up 7.01% to $824/st. U.S. CRC is up 6.99% to $750/st.
Keep up to date on everything going on in the world of trade and tariffs via MetalMiner’s Trade Resource Center.
U.S. plate prices were late to the party, but plate has increased 13.58% over the last month, climbing to $694/st.