Insteel Industries earned $900,000 in the third quarter of its fiscal year, down from $3.7 million a year earlier, according to an earnings report. Net sales were down by 5.1 percent to $93.6 million.

 

 

The Mount Airy-based Insteel, which makes steel wire reinforcements used in concrete construction, said its profit margins decreased and shipments were lower in the quarter, with demand weakened by a still-slow construction sector. Capacity utilization was at 44 percent in the quarter, down from 46 percent in the second quarter of this fiscal year and 48 percent a year earlier.

 

 

CEO H.O. Woltz III said private construction is picking up, but there probably won't be a big overall increase in construction spending until the economy improves and more jobs are created. The passage of a new federal transportation bill is helpful, but the level of funding provided will probably only stall the downward trend in government infrastructure spending, not send it higher, he said.

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