French President Francois Hollande on Thursday met steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal to discuss the fate of the last blast furnaces in the eastern Lorraine region after a report that ArcelorMittal planned to shut them down. Hollande's office said the president told Mittal of "the demands of the state and the government" concerning the Florange site which his company owns and which lies in what was once the heart of France's steel industry. Liberation newspaper said that ArcelorMittal planned to shut the furnaces which employ 550 of the 3,200 employees at the plant. Their closure would deal a fresh blow to the Socialist government's battle against unemployment. The paper said the French state was offering to buy the furnaces for a symbolic euro and then find a firm willing to keep them working. ArcelorMittal has not commented on the report. Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg said the company had made a concession in giving into a French government demand that ArcelorMittal allow another company to restart furnace operations at Florange. Montebourg said the French government insisted that any shutdowns are accompanied by ArcelorMittal making significant investments in other areas, citing a figure of 150 million euros ($194 million). The decline of France's manufacturing sector was a key issue in this year's presidential election campaign. ArcelorMittal is the leading supplier of steel products in all major markets including automotive, construction, household appliances and packaging. It operates in 60 countries and employs about 260,000 people worldwide. It has temporarily closed several sites in Europe, in France as well as Belgium and Spain.
GMT 17:19 2018 Thursday ,11 January
China factory gate inflation slows to 13-month lowGMT 17:50 2018 Wednesday ,10 January
German industrial output rebounds in NovemberGMT 17:39 2018 Wednesday ,10 January
Samsung tips record Q4 operating profit of more than $14 bnGMT 17:29 2018 Tuesday ,09 January
German industrial orders dip in NovemberGMT 15:36 2018 Thursday ,04 January
China factory activity accelerated in December: CaixinGMT 13:33 2018 Wednesday ,03 January
Turkey inflation rate eases but still stubbornly high in DecemberGMT 16:27 2018 Monday ,01 January
China manufacturing activity slows in DecemberGMT 17:36 2017 Sunday ,31 December
Spain to leave EU's deficit 'sin bin' next year: Rajoy
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor