U.S. Steel completes Stelco acquisition |
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Thu, 01 Nov 2007 00:27
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PITTSBURGH (AP) - United States Steel Corp. said Wednesday it had completed its $1.2 billion acquisition of Canadian steel maker Stelco Inc., expanding its presence in North America and making it the world's fifth-largest steel producer.The Pittsburgh company renamed the smaller firm U.S. Steel Canada Inc. and selected a team of managers from U.S. Steel facilities in the United States and Central Europe.The announcement came two months after U.S. Steel said it had agreed to buy Stelco, a deal that will boost its annual raw steel production capacity to 33 million net tons from the current 26.8 million tons.Global steel producers have been consolidating in recent years to cope with intense competition, a need to reinvest in aging facilities and new opportunities in Asia.Stelco emerged from bankruptcy protection last year and announced plans to cut 15 percent of its work force after settling a new four-year contract with the United Steelworkers union.On Tuesday, U.S. Steel posted a 35 percent decline in third-quarter earnings on weakness in North America, plant shutdowns in Europe and acquisition-related costs. It said the downward trend was likely to continue in the fourth quarter.Earlier this year, U.S. Steel completed a $2 billion deal to acquire Texas-based Lone Star Technologies Inc., which makes welded pipe used in oil fields.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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U.S. Steel receives Canadian OK for acquisition of Stelco 