Arcelor Mittal to combine US trading operations

The newly-formed company made up of the world's two largest steelmakers, Arcelor Mittal International, has decided to concentrate the North American trading operations of the two companies at a single location. Arcelor Mittal told customers this week that as part of its “integration process,” it will consolidate all import and trading offices at the company's US headquarters in Chicago, thus eliminating the Arcelor International America branch in New York. In a letter to its customers, the company said it will relocate “most” activities at the New York branch to the Chicago branch by the summer of 2007. The company did not specify which, if any, activities would not be transferred to the Chicago location.