Indian Economy: Growth -2

[Naresh]

[center]<b><span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Arcelor Says Board Unanimously Backing New Mittal Takeover Bid</span></b><!--emo&:ind--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/india.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='india.gif' /><!--endemo-->[/center]

<b>June 25 (Bloomberg) – Arcelor SA Chairman Joseph Kinsch said his board is unanimously backing a new takeover offer from Mittal Steel Co., ending five months of hostility to the steel industry's biggest-ever transaction.

Mittal raised its offer by 10 percent and the new company will be called Arcelor Mittal, Kinsch told reporters after a board meeting at the company's headquarters in Luxembourg today. Mittal's previous offer was valued at 23.5 billion euros ($29.4 billion)</b>.

Arcelor had since Jan. 27 sought to repel a hostile bid from Mittal that would see it become part of a steelmaker three times larger than the nearest rival. Arcelor last month told investors it would instead buy most of Russia's OAO Severstal. Some investors have opposed that deal and Mittal raised its offer by more than a third.

Citigroup Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Credit Suisse Group and Societe Generale SA are advising Mittal. Arcelor's advisers include BNP Paribas SA, Calyon, Deutsche Bank AG, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Merrill Lynch & Co., Morgan Stanley and UBS AG. Severstal is being advised by ABN Amro Holding NV and Lehman Brothers Inc.

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