U.S. steel mills post capacity utilization rate of 53.8% last week
The U.S. steel sector operated at a capacity utilization rate of 53.8% for the week ending May 30, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported.
Raw steel production for the aforementioned week totaled 1.21 million net tons. The weekly total marked a 35.9% decline compared with the equivalent week in 2019, when production totaled 1.88 million net tons at a capacity utilization rate of 80.8%.
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However, production for the week ending May 30, 2020, ticked up 1.3% from the previous week, when production totaled 1.19 million net tons at a capacity utilization rate of 53.2%.
Adjusted year-to-date production through May 30, 2020, totaled 34.3 million net tons at a capacity utilization rate of 69.3%, which marked a 16.1% decline from the 40.9 million net tons produced during the same period last year (when the capacity utilization rate was 81.4%).
By region, production for the week ending May 30, 2020, totaled:
- Northeast: 100,000 tons
- Great Lakes: 406,000 tons
- Midwest: 121,000 tons
- Southern: 524,000 tons
- Western: 55,000 tons
U.S. steel prices have made some gains in recent weeks after hitting what appeared to be a short-term low at the beginning of March.
The U.S. hot-rolled coil price closed Monday at $498/st, up 6.87% from a month prior.
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U.S. HDG steel closed Monday at $744/st, up 4.64% from the previous month. U.S. cold-rolled coil, meanwhile, rose 4.31% to $678/st.
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