For the quarter ending 31 December 2020, the company reported net income of US$1.30 per diluted share on net sales of nearly US$5.3 billion. In the same quarter during the prior year, it posted net income of US$107.8 million, or 35 cents per diluted shares, on net sales of US$5.1 billion. 

Nucor said non-residential construction has remained resilient, and it is looking for strength in that market as well as automotive to continue going into this year. 

“We see generally improving conditions in heavy equipment, agriculture, renewable energy, and on-highway truck and trailer,” it said. “We expect earnings in the first quarter of 2021 to significantly increase from the fourth quarter of 2020. The expected performance of the steel mills segment in the first quarter of 2021 is the primary driver for this increase as our sheet, plate, bar and structural mills are forecasting increased profitability in the first quarter of 2021 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2020.”