Segments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2022

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 NJSM. 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, wire and wire mesh, overhead doors, and utility towers and structures. 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,
	2022			2021			2020
Net sales to external customers:
Steel mills	$	24,189,858		$	24,145,396		$	12,109,307
Steel products		15,060,328			9,727,943			6,623,068
Raw materials		2,262,281			2,610,600			1,407,283
	$	41,512,467		$	36,483,939		$	20,139,658
Intercompany sales:
Steel mills	$	5,859,367		$	6,297,688		$	3,036,790
Steel products		547,219			360,063			248,477
Raw materials		13,715,176			15,762,685			8,153,841
Corporate/eliminations		(20,121,762	)		(22,420,436	)		(11,439,108	)
	$	—		$	—		$	—
Depreciation expense:
Steel mills	$	529,005		$	465,733		$	449,289
Steel products		115,501			99,248			93,184
Raw materials		171,060			159,886			150,474
Corporate		11,126			10,539			9,163
	$	826,692		$	735,406		$	702,110
Amortization expense:
Steel mills	$	7,829		$	7,829		$	7,334
Steel products		199,379			93,160			47,773
Raw materials		27,734			28,168			28,249
	$	234,942		$	129,157		$	83,356
Earnings before income taxes and noncontrolling    interests:
Steel mills	$	7,199,087		$	9,735,020		$	720,151
Steel products		4,093,105			1,291,450			690,547
Raw materials		496,823			549,956			23,621
Corporate/eliminations		(1,544,171	)		(2,375,568	)		(598,781	)
	$	10,244,844		$	9,200,858		$	835,538
Segment assets:
Steel mills	$	14,157,229		$	13,235,463		$	9,708,260
Steel products		12,087,145			7,845,010			4,461,042
Raw materials		3,383,114			3,870,806			3,324,489
Corporate/eliminations		2,851,722			871,793			2,631,603
	$	32,479,210		$	25,823,072		$	20,125,394
Capital expenditures:
Steel mills	$	1,453,277		$	1,336,276		$	1,238,132
Steel products		267,128			187,152			135,512
Raw materials		181,680			128,765			125,213
Corporate		50,380			48,171			28,259
	$	1,952,465		$	1,700,364		$	1,527,116

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

	Year Ended December 31,
	2022		2021		2020
Net sales to external customers:
Sheet	$	11,437,799	$	12,675,679	$	5,450,507
Bar		7,031,798		6,039,187		3,821,158
Structural		2,928,072		2,597,768		1,526,283
Plate		2,792,188		2,832,762		1,311,360
Tubular Products		1,944,532		2,194,732		1,113,581
Rebar Fabrication		2,205,960		1,794,658		1,708,441
Joist		2,958,235		1,351,235		758,853
Deck		2,392,438		1,167,162		717,276
Other Steel Products		5,559,164		3,220,155		2,324,916
Raw Materials		2,262,281		2,610,601		1,407,283
	$	41,512,467	$	36,483,939	$	20,139,658