15.

SEGMENTS: Nucor reports its results in the following segments: steel mills, steel products and raw materials. The steel mills segment includes carbon and alloy steel in sheet, bars, structural and plate; steel trading businesses; rebar distribution businesses; and Nucor’s equity method investments in Duferdofin Nucor, NuMit and Nucor-JFE. The steel products segment includes steel joists and joist girders, steel deck, fabricated concrete reinforcing steel, cold finished steel, steel fasteners, metal building systems, steel grating, tubular products businesses, piling products business, and wire and wire mesh. The raw materials segment includes The David J. Joseph Company and its affiliates, primarily a scrap broker and processor; Nu-Iron Unlimited and Nucor Steel Louisiana, two facilities that produce direct reduced iron used by the steel mills; and our natural gas production operations.

Previously, Nucor’s tubular products and piling products businesses were reported in the steel mills segment. Beginning in the first quarter of 2018, these businesses were reclassified to the steel products segment as part of a realignment of Nucor’s reportable segments to reflect the way in which they are now viewed by management and how segment performance assessments will be made by the chief operating decision maker beginning in such period. The segment data for the comparable period has also been reclassified into the steel products segment in order to conform to the current year presentation. The steel mills, steel products and raw materials segments are consistent with the way Nucor manages its business, which is primarily based upon the similarity of the types of products produced and sold by each segment. Additionally, the composition of assets by segment at December 31, 2017 was reclassified to conform to the current year presentation. This reclassification between segments did not have any impact on the consolidated asset balances.

Net interest expense, other income, profit sharing expense and stock-based compensation are shown under Corporate/eliminations. Corporate assets primarily include cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, allowances to eliminate intercompany profit in inventory, deferred income tax assets, federal and state income taxes receivable and investments in and advances to affiliates.

Nucor’s results by segment for the first quarter of 2018 and 2017 were as follows (in thousands):


	Three Months (13 Weeks) Ended
	March 31, 2018			April 1, 2017
Net sales to external customers:
Steel mills	$	3,580,694		$	3,190,507
Steel products		1,468,711			1,212,357
Raw materials		519,014			412,315

	$	5,568,419		$	4,815,179

Intercompany sales:
Steel mills	$	898,326		$	658,360
Steel products		35,770			29,701
Raw materials		2,608,944			2,178,639
Corporate/eliminations		(3,543,040	)		(2,866,700	)

	$	—		$	—

Earnings (loss) before income taxes and noncontrolling interests:
Steel mills	$	560,503		$	644,183
Steel products		85,814			66,919
Raw materials		74,547			26,391
Corporate/eliminations		(204,952	)		(188,518	)

	$	515,912		$	548,975


	March 31, 2018			Dec. 31, 2017
Segment assets:
Steel mills	$	8,147,875		$	7,671,217
Steel products		4,407,472			4,323,907
Raw materials		3,567,900			3,396,110
Corporate/eliminations		(2,001	)		450,024

	$	16,121,246		$	15,841,258