Raw steel production in the Great Lakes region dropped to 610,000 tons last week, ending a two-week surge.

Steel output remains much lower than normal amid a record deluge of imports that account for about a third of the total market share. Overall U.S. production lags 2014 by 7.1 percent.

Local steel production fell by 40,000 tons, or 6.1 percent in the week that ended Saturday, according to an American Iron and Steel Institute estimate. Overall U.S. steel output dropped by 2.3 percent over the same period.

Most of the raw steel production in the Great Lakes region takes place in the Chicago area, mainly Lake and Porter counties in Northwest Indiana. Indiana has led the nation in steel production for more than 30 years.

Production in the Southern District, typically the country's second-biggest steel-producing region, rose to 556,000 tons last week, up from 546,000 tons the week before.

Total domestic raw steel production last week was about 1.665 million tons, down from 1.712 million tons a week earlier.

Nationally, domestic steel mills had a capacity utilization rate of 70.4 percent last week, down from 72.4 percent a week earlier. The capacity utilization rate had been 77.3 percent at the same time a year earlier.

Year-to-date output was 31.5 million net tons, at a capacity utilization rate of 72.3 percent, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.