Mittal Steel to reduce third quarter production

Mittal Steel Co. N.V. today announced its plans to reduce its global production by one million tons in the third quarter of 2005. This follows similar reductions in the second quarter. The production cutbacks will be split equally between the company's North American operations and those in Europe and the rest of the world.

Commenting on the reduction, Mittal Steel Chairman and CEO, Lakshmi Mittal, said, "We are intent on building a sustainable global steel industry that can offer value to all stakeholders throughout the business cycle. It is essential that we act in a responsible and mature manner, and respond accordingly to current market dynamics. The production cutbacks that we have announced today will help to reduce the inventory build up that we currently have and help to restore equilibrium to the global supply and demand equation."