In the week ending January 18, 2014, US domestic raw steel production was 1,836,000 net tons while the capability utilization rate was 76.6 percent. Production was 1,832,000 net tons in the week ending January 18, 2013, while the capability utilization then was 76.5 percent.
The current week production represents a 0.2 percent increase from the same period in the previous year. Production for the week ending January 18, 2014 is up 0.3 percent from the previous week ending January 11, 2014 when production was 1,830,000 net tons and the rate of capability utilization was 76.4 percent.
Adjusted year-to-date production through January 18, 2014 was 4,707,000 net tons, at a capability utilization rate of 76.4 percent. That is a 0.1 percent increase from the 4,700,000 net tons during the same period last year, when the capability utilization rate was 76.5 percent.
Broken down by districts, here's production for the week ending January 18, 2014 in thousands of net tons: North East: 204; Great Lakes: 642; Midwest: 261; Southern: 641 and Western: 88, for a total of 1,836.
It should also be noted that the capability for Q3 2013 is approximately 31.5 million tons versus 32.7 million tons for the same period last year and 31.1 million tons for Q2 2013. Production capability for 2013 reflects the closure of several steelmaking facilities in 2012, new facilities coming on-line and improvements made to existing facilities to increase their capability. When comparing capability utilization rates between 2013 and 2012, the change to capability for 2013 should be taken into account when analyzing the data.
