Estimated raw steel production in the Northwest Indiana/Chicago area -- the nation's second-largest steel producing region -- was 450,000 tons during the week ending Nov. 14, up from the 405,000 tons produced the week prior, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.

Production in the Southern District, the nation's largest steel-producing region, was estimated at 490,000 tons during the same period, down from the 493,000 tons produced a week earlier.

Domestic mills produced 1.56 million tons of steel last week, up 28.8 percent from the 1.21 million tons made during the same period in 2008. U.S. steel mills operated at 65.3 percent capacity last week versus 64.7 percent capacity during the previous week.

For the year to date, U.S. steel mills produced 53.77 million tons of steel versus 93.24 million tons during the comparable 2008 period.