Segments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Segments

22. 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 NuMit and Nucor-JFE. The steel products segment includes steel joists and joist girders, steel deck, fabricated concrete reinforcing steel, cold finished steel, precision castings, steel fasteners, metal building systems, insulated metal panels, steel grating, tubular products businesses, steel racking, piling products business, and wire and wire mesh. The raw materials segment includes The David J. Joseph Company and its affiliates (“DJJ”), primarily a scrap broker and processor; Nu-Iron Unlimited and Nucor Steel Louisiana LLC, two facilities that produce direct reduced iron used by the steel mills; and our natural gas production operations.

Corporate/eliminations include items such as net interest expense on long-term debt, charges and credits associated with changes in allowances to eliminate intercompany profit in inventory, profit sharing expense and stock-based compensation. Corporate assets primarily include cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, restricted cash and cash equivalents, 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 were as follows (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021			2020			2019
Net sales to external customers:
Steel mills	$	24,145,396		$	12,109,307		$	13,933,950
Steel products		9,727,943			6,623,068			6,990,064
Raw materials		2,610,600			1,407,283			1,664,844
	$	36,483,939		$	20,139,658		$	22,588,858
Intercompany sales:
Steel mills	$	6,297,688		$	3,036,790		$	3,304,437
Steel products		360,063			248,477			233,728
Raw materials		15,762,685			8,153,841			8,784,397
Corporate/eliminations		(22,420,436	)		(11,439,108	)		(12,322,562	)
	$	—		$	—		$	—
Depreciation expense:
Steel mills	$	465,733		$	449,289		$	401,609
Steel products		99,248			93,184			85,276
Raw materials		159,886			150,474			151,124
Corporate		10,539			9,163			10,902
	$	735,406		$	702,110		$	648,911
Amortization expense:
Steel mills	$	7,829		$	7,334		$	8,624
Steel products		93,160			47,773			49,914
Raw materials		28,168			28,249			27,204
	$	129,157		$	83,356		$	85,742
Earnings before income taxes and noncontrolling    interests:
Steel mills	$	9,735,020		$	720,151		$	1,790,694
Steel products		1,291,450			690,547			511,145
Raw materials		549,956			23,621			(28,244	)
Corporate/eliminations		(2,375,568	)		(598,781	)		(490,788	)
	$	9,200,858		$	835,538		$	1,782,807
Segment assets:
Steel mills	$	13,235,463		$	9,708,260		$	9,283,216
Steel products		7,845,010			4,461,042			4,610,628
Raw materials		3,870,806			3,324,489			3,316,479
Corporate/eliminations		871,793			2,631,603			1,134,343
	$	25,823,072		$	20,125,394		$	18,344,666
Capital expenditures:
Steel mills	$	1,336,276		$	1,238,132		$	1,133,089
Steel products		187,152			135,512			93,848
Raw materials		128,765			125,213			244,818
Corporate		48,171			28,259			40,315
	$	1,700,364		$	1,527,116		$	1,512,070

Net sales by product were as follows (in thousands). Further product group breakdown is impracticable.

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Net sales to external customers:
Sheet	$	12,675,679	$	5,450,507	$	6,450,506
Bar		6,039,187		3,821,158		4,106,640
Structural		2,597,768		1,526,283		1,573,248
Plate		2,832,762		1,311,360		1,803,556
Tubular Products		2,194,732		1,113,581		1,207,398
Rebar Fabrication		1,794,658		1,708,441		1,666,445
Other Steel Products		5,738,552		3,801,045		4,116,221
Raw Materials		2,610,601		1,407,283		1,664,844
	$	36,483,939	$	20,139,658	$	22,588,858