As reported this week by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), during the week ended May 5, 2007, raw steel production in the US increased by 1.4 percent from the previous week, rising to 2.062 million net tons (nt).
The previous week's numbers showed 2.032 million nt of raw steel produced by the US. Steel production for the week ended May 5, 2007 was down 6.5 percent from the 2.206 million net tons produced the same week of last year.
The Southern district produced the most raw steel for the week ended May 5, 2007, recording a total of 641,000 nt, followed by the Indiana/Chicago district with 532,000 nt.
Year-to-date net tonnage as of May 5, 2007 registered at 35.6 million nt with mills working at an average capacity utilization rate of 84.0 percent. This compares to YTD net tonnage of 38.4 million nt on May 5, 2006, with an average capacity utilization rate of 89.7 percent.