Raw steel production in the country's Great Lakes region rose to 694,000 tons, though the overall domestic industry slumped slightly last week.
Overall U.S. output dropped by 0.9 percent in the week that ended Saturday, according to an American Iron and Steel Institute estimate. Local production rose by 3,000 tons, or 0.4 percent.
Most of the raw steel production in the Great Lakes region takes place in Indiana and the Chicago area.
Production in the Southern District, typically the country's second biggest steel-producing region, fell to 659,000 tons, down from 676,000 tons a week earlier.
Total domestic raw steel production last week was about 1.91 million tons, down from 1.93 million tons a week earlier.
Nationally, domestic steel mills had a capacity utilization rate of 79.5 percent last week, down from 80.3 percent a week earlier. The capacity utilization rate had been 77.6 percent a year earlier.
U.S. mills have produced 64.1 million tons of steel so far this year, or about 0.7 percent more than at the same point in 2013.
Steel imports rose 6 percent in July, capturing 29 percent of the market share, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute. The United States imported 3.8 million net tons in July, a 6.1 percent increase over June.
Steel import permit applications in August fell 8 percent from July to 3.5 million, according to the U.S. Commerce Department's Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis data. Import permits for finished steel products fell 12 percent from July to 2.6 million.
Finished steel imports captured 26 percent of the market share in August, and have cornered 27 percent of the market share so far this year. Imports of reinforcing bars rose 240 percent in August, while wire rod imports shot up 36 percent.
Source: nwtines
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