ArcelorMittal will idle both blast furnaces at its Cleveland, Ohio plant throughout the rest of this year due to decreasing business and the global economic downturn.
ArcelorMittal released a statement on the temporary closure, saying, "In light of the present global economic slowdown the company is selectively reducing production in selected markets in order to adapt supply to current demand. This is a temporary measure in response to market conditions."
Pat Gallagher, a director for the United Steel Workers, told press, "In a matter of months, orders have dropped off the cliff."
Other operations at the Cleveland plant, including maintenance work and finishing work on existing inventories, are expected to continue. The company is accepting voluntary layoffs, however, and may lay off up to 400 out of the 1,450 union employees at the Cleveland mill.
The Luxembourg-based company recently indicated that it planned to slash steel output at its operations by as much as 15 percent worldwide.