Nucor Corp. said its third-quarter profits soared year-over-year to US$676.7 million on net sales of US$6.7 billion. Meanwhile, Steel Dynamics Inc. said its quarterly net income more than doubled year-over-year to US$398.4 million on net sales of US$3.2 billion. 

During the quarter, Nucor shipped 6.29 million tons of mill products, an increase of 7% from the same quarter last year. At the same time, Steel Dynamics shipped 2.76 million tons, up 11.5% from 2.46 million tons from last year. 

Looking ahead, both steelmakers said they see continued strength in the steel markets. 

"We remain confident that macroeconomic and market conditions are in place to benefit domestic steel consumption in 2019," said Steel Dynamics chief executive Mark Millett.  "Based on strong domestic steel demand fundamentals and customer optimism, we believe steel consumption will continue to be strong.”