The ball was in Arcelor's court yesterday as the steel manufacturer's board prepared to respond to a sweetened 25.8 billion euro (US$32.9 billion) offer from rival Mittal Steel.
Arcelor's board of directors were due to meet in Luxembourg at 3pm yesterday to study the details of the improved offer made on Friday by Mittal, the biggest steelmaker worldwide in terms of volume.
But it was not clear whether the Franco-Spanish-Luxembourg group would come to a definitive decision. Arcelor "does not have all the official documents" laying out the new offer, a source close to the proposed deal said.
Even if it was to issue a statement at the end of the day, it could be a few days before Arcelor's board gives its recommendations to shareholders.
For nearly four months, the group's board has been doing all it can to dissuade them from succumbing to Mittal's advances, and there is little chance that the improved offer will be enough to convince the directors to accept a tie-up.
"Arcelor still believes a coming together of the two companies is not a convincing proposal," a source close to the group said on Saturday.
Moreover, the leaders of the group have always insisted an all-cash offer is a pre-condition to talks with Mittal.
On Friday, Mittal raised its bid for Arcelor to 25.8 billion euros, or 37.74 euros a share, up from 18.6 billion euros, and said that if the bid succeeded the family would hold about 45 percent of the new entity -- a smaller proportion than previously envisaged.
Indian businessman Lakshmi Mittal on Friday declared his "absolute determination" to secure a deal to buy Arcelor. The revised offer is aimed both at answering the criticisms of shareholders, who judged the earlier offer too low, and at assuaging the concerns of France, Luxembourg and Spain about the flagship of Europe's steel industry falling into foreign hands.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2