Nucor expects higher steel shipments in 1Q

US electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker Nucor expects to delivery more mill shipments in the first quarter of 2023 than it did three months earlier.

Nucor anticipates mill shipments will top the 2.31mn short tons (st) it shipped in the fourth quarter, the company said. Shipments were 2.39mn st in the first quarter of 2022.

The company expects better profitability at its steel mills segment, driven by margins and volumes, with the largest improvement at its sheet mills.

Nucor's steel products segment is expected to post lower profits compared with the fourth quarter on slowdowns in construction activity and some lower pricing.

Nucor expects overall first quarter profit to come in at about half of the $2.1bn it earned in profit in the first quarter of 2022.

By Rye Druzin