UNITED STATES April 23 2015 6:19 PM

NEW YORK (Scrap Register): United States raw steel production plummeted by 10.1% to 1,655,000 net tons in the week ended April 18, while the capability utilization rate was 70.0 percent, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).

According to AISI, production was 1,841,000 net tons in the week ended April 18, 2014 while the capability utilization then was 76.6 percent.

Production for the week ended April 18, 2015 is up 2.1 percent from the previous week ended April 11, 2015 when production was 1,621,000 net tons and the rate of capability utilization was 68.6 percent.

Adjusted year-to-date production through April 18, 2015 was 26,421,000 net tons, at a capability utilization rate of 72.4 percent. That is down 6.9 percent from the 28,383,000 net tons during the same period last year, when the capability utilization rate was 77.0 percent.