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November 20th, 2009
- Market Stats
Taipei Taiwan - Taiwan’s wire rod exports in October up by 12pct MoM
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| Yieh reports that Taiwan exported 17,800 tonnes of wire rod in October 2009, up by 12% MoM while down by 12% YoY. For the wire rod which diameter is below 14mm, Taiwan achieved an average exported price of TWD 20,090 per tonne in October 2009, up by TWD 150 per tonne on September. As for the wire rod which diameter is over 14mm, Taiwan achieved an average exported price of TWD 20,180 per tonne, up by TWD 90 per tonne. The main reason why the average exported price enjoyed a pick up is because the exported price to Malaysia and Thailand increased.
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November 20th, 2009
- Projects
Seoul Korea - Kiswire plans to expand investment in Qingdao
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| South Korea Company Kiswire Ltd is plans to invest around USD 5 million to 10 million in the export processing zone of Qingdao, building a 20,000 square meter plant expanding capacity of all products made in China for export. The vice mayor of the city met the mission of Kiswire recently and said they will strongly support the investment. As per a report from MySteel.net, the company has already set up three subsidiaries in Qingdao so far.
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November 20th, 2009
- Acquisitions
Beijing China - General Steel Holdings signs Non-binding LOI to acquire Tangshan Baotai Iron and Steel Group
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| General Steel Holdings, Inc., one of China's leading non-state-owned producers of steel products and aggregators of domestic steel companies, today announced that it has signed a non-binding Letter of Intent ("LOI") to acquire a 60% controlling interest in Tangshan Baotai Iron and Steel Group Co., Ltd. ("Baotai"), a non-state-owned producer of steel billet and strip steel in Tangshan, Hebei province, China. If this transaction is consummated, General Steel is expected to have approximately 10,000 employees and operate five subsidiaries based in China producing a variety of steel products including rebar, steel billet and strip steel, hot-rolled carbon and silicon sheet, high-speed wire and spiral-weld pipe.
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November 20th, 2009
- Acquisitions
Melville New York - Arrow Electronics to buy specialty wire firm A.E. Petsche
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| Electronic components distributor Arrow Electronics said it will purchase Arlington,Texas-based wire, cable and harness supplier, A.E. Petsche Co, for an undisclosed amount.Melville-based Arrow said the acquisition would expand its reach into the aerospace and defense market, Petsche’s consumer base. The deal is slated to close before the end of the year. The Texas company, which employs 250 people, distributes its cables, connectors and wires throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Belgium. It also had $220 million in sales in 2008.
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November 19th, 2009
- General
Washington D.C. - Many Chinese steel wire companies hit with 438% countervailing duties as U.S. sets duties on Chinese steel wire goods
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| The Commerce Department has set preliminary duties ranging from 2% to 438% on hundreds of millions of dollars of imported steel wire decking from China to offset government subsidies. The preliminary decision on Tuesday concerns welded-wire rack decking, a product used in industrial and other commercial storage rack systems. U.S. companies imported an estimated $317 million of such decking in 2008, an increase of 49% from 2006.
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November 19th, 2009
- Market Stats
London U.K. - Market eyes weak demand, with LME copper stocks up again
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| Copper fell on Tuesday as the U.S. dollar recovered and investors saw a rise to 13-1/2 month highs in the previous session as overdone given continuing stockpile gains. Benchmark copper for three-months delivery on the London Metal Exchange traded at $6,795 (U.S.) a tonne at 1026 GMT, after surging 5.1 per cent to close at $6,855 on Monday, a level not seen since late September 2008. “Yesterday's jump was a little bit overdone, there are still wider economic concerns. We've seen builds in (copper) stocks since the middle of the year but it's had no impact on price,” said David Wilson, analyst at Societe Generale. “The market is picking and choosing what it decides to take notice of, it's entirely sentiment driven,” he added. The U.S. dollar inched off 15-month lows on Tuesday, making dollar-priced metals more expensive for non-U.S. investors. Also weighing on copper, equities, seen as a proxy for economic growth retreated from 13-month highs in Europe. But overall sentiment remained upbeat, with funds who have helped drive copper up more than 120 per cent this year still pinning their hopes on a revival in demand for raw materials next year.
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November 19th, 2009
- General
New York City - Strong US metal imports fuel economic rebound hope
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| Greater shipments of industrial metals into the United States in September reflect a budding optimism in the economy and relatively attractive prices should keep luring manufacturers into replenishing depleted inventories. The U.S. International Trade Commission on Friday reported that September copper imports soared more than 50 percent from August to 56,012 tonnes. Aluminum shipments were up more than 18 percent to 134,800 tonnes, and zinc and nickel also showed month-over-month gains. Recent data reinforces a brighter economic outlook. The Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing index rose to 55.7 in October, marking the third month of expansion, while a 0.7 percent rise in industrial production and gains in both construction spending and new housing starts added to the positive sentiment. The U.S. will likely continue to ramp up spending, as Feds has indicated they will keep interest rates at extremely low levels and provide ample financial sector liquidity for most of 2010. Out of the $787 billion allocated for the U.S. stimulus program, only about a fifth to a quarter has been spent so far. Much more of the U.S. stimulus money is to come out by end of fiscal 2010, with maximum impact occurring in Q4 2009 - Q2 2010.
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November 19th, 2009
- General
Brantford Ontario - Steel demand slowly picking up but is a long way off peak in 2008
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| Russian apparent steel demand is expected to rise 15-20 percent next year thanks to robust construction activity, an executive at Severstal , Russia's largest steelmaker, said on Monday. Construction projects and machinery orders will help demand to rise next year in the world's fourth largest steel producing country, Alexander Malanichev, Severstal's head of strategic marketing, told a Metal Bulletin steel conference. However the increase in demand is from an extremely low level as Russian steel demand is expected to drop by 30 percent overall in 2009, compared with 2008. The global steel industry is slowly recovering from one of the worst downturns it has seen in its history. But the rise in orders are yet to be reflected in company results, analysts say. Malanichev said he saw signs of improvement in Russian steel demand but said looming overcapacity was a major threat for the prices, which have risen over the past couple of months from last year's lows.
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November 18th, 2009
- Acquisitions
Luxembourg - ArcelorMittal acquires an additional 13.881% stake in ArcelorMittal Ostrava, a.s.
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| ArcelorMittal today announces that it has signed an agreement to acquire a 13.881% stake in ArcelorMittal Ostrava, a.s. from a subsidiary of PPF GROUP N.V., an international financial and investment group in Central and Eastern Europe, for CZK 6,879,524,000 (approximately $US 404.3 million). This values ArcelorMittal Ostrava, a.s. at an Enterprise Value of approximately $US 264 per tonne of liquid steel capacity. The final payment will be made in 2010. ArcelorMittal will thus increase its stake in ArcelorMittal Ostrava, a.s. to approximately 96.4% and PPF GROUP N.V. will step out of the Czech steelmaker's shareholding structure. This agreement is consistent with ArcelorMittal's commitment to continue as one of the largest foreign investors in the Czech Republic. ArcelorMittal Ostrava a.s. is the largest steelmaker in the Czech Republic
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November 18th, 2009
- General
Tokyo - Tokyo Steel to raise wire rod prices for December contracts
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| Japan’s largest maker of construction girders, will increase prices of some products by as much as 4.2 percent because of rising raw material costs. The Tokyo-based company will raise the price of construction products including deformed steel bar, wire rod, and I-beam by 2,000 yen ($22.3) a metric ton for contracts starting next month, it said today. Rising steel production in China, the world’s largest maker, will likely spur higher costs for materials including iron ore and steel scrap, pressuring earnings for the industry, Managing Director Naoto Ohori told reporters in Tokyo. Iron ore prices may rise 20 percent next year, Samsung Securities said yesterday. “Raw material costs are likely to go up,” Ohori said. “Cost increases would be unavoidable for steelmakers.” The company will sell deformed steel bars at 50,000 yen for December. Prices of wire rods will increase to 61,000 yen next month from 59,000 yen, and I-beam will be raised to 64,000 yen from 62,000 yen, the company said.
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November 18th, 2009
- General
Mumbai India - Aksh Optifibre to transfer manufacturing undertaking
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| Aksh Optifibre informed BSE today that the company has executed an agreement for sale of its manufacturing undertakings engaged in manufacturing optic fiber, optic fiber cable, ERP rods and other telecom cables at Bhiwadi and Reengus in Rajasthan to its wholly owned subsidiary namely Aksh Technologies, on a going concern basis.
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November 18th, 2009
- General
New Holland, Pennsylvania - Ber-Tek fiber-optic cables exceed OM4
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| Berk-Tek, a Nexans Company, says that its fiber-optic cable family includes fiber grades that exceed the recently ratified TIA-492AAAD for OM4 specifications. OM4 fiber is a 50-µm laser-optimized multimode fiber with extended bandwidth properties over the previous OM3. It is designed to enhance the system cost benefits enabled by 850-nm VCSELs for existing 1- and 10-Gbps applications, as well as future 40 and 100 Gbps systems. With an effective modal bandwidth (EMB) of 4700 MHz*km, OM4 fiber can reach a distance of 550 m for 10 Gbps (almost twice that of OM3).
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November 17th, 2009
- General
Beijing China - Strong demand leading to steel overcapacity in China
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| 21st Economic Herald citing Mr Tang Bin Chief Engineer of National Development and Reform Commission said in 7th China Iron and Steel Annual Meeting lately held in Beijing that "Now, some small blast furnaces and the outdated facilities which have been closed before are starting operation again."
Nowadays, production speed and investment is picking up in China steel industry, driving oversupply to increase again. The data shows, national output of crude steel was posted at 472.47 million tonnes during January to October 2009 edging up 10.5% from one year ago, and the output came at 51.75 million tonnes in the single month of October a growth of 42.4%YoY.
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November 17th, 2009
- Projects
Mumbai India - Essar, Dhabi Group sign deal on Warid stake in Uganda, Congo
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| The Dhabi Group and India's Essar group have signed the definitive agreements for an investment by Essar into Warid in Uganda and Republic of Congo. Essar will acquire a majority stake in both the operators, while the partnership is also expected to bring operational efficiencies to the African operations. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals in Uganda and Republic of Congo. The move is in line with Essar's plan be a part of the growing telecommunications market in Africa. Essar Telecom earlier launched mobile services in Kenya under the brand 'yu'.
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November 17th, 2009
- General
Taipei Taiwan - Taiwan`s wire and connector suppliers expand output to tap notebook PC boom
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| With demand for notebook PCs strongly rebounding due partly to launch of Windows 7 and partly to market recovery, Taiwan`s manufacturers of wires and connectors for notebook PCs are actively moving to expand their output to tap the market boom, according to industry sources. For instance, a brand new fabrication plant of Wanshih Electronic Co., Ltd., a top-caliber supplier of mini coaxial cable assemblies, is under construction in China and will become operational by the end of next year and lead to a 30-50% increase in the firm`s total output. Plus, other power cord and cable makers, namely Taiwan Line Tek Electronic Co., Ltd., I-Sheng Electric Wire & Cable Co., Ltd. and Lotes Co., Ltd., have also kicked off output expansion recently.
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November 17th, 2009
- General
Beijing China/Singapore - Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming blasted Obama's decision to slap on duties.
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| Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming blasted Obama for slapping on import duties using special anti-surge measure that applies only to China and that Washington had never before used. Chen, in a speech in Singapore, said that action violated pledges Obama and other world leaders had made against imposing new protectionist measures through 2010. "Shouldn't a measure that has never been used, for decades, be considered a new measure?" Chen said. He also took a swipe at Obama's hope of boosting exports to fuel U.S. economic growth, while persuading China and other Asian economies to rely less on selling to the United States and more on their own domestic demand. "Some countries on the one hand want to use every kind of protectionism to revive their employment numbers quickly (and) at the same time want to increase their exports by a lot and turn into the world's biggest exporter," Chen said.
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November 16th, 2009
- Press Releases
Vienna, Austria - NEWS from the AWCMA/VOEDKM - Austria
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 Achieving greater awareness of its market leading high-tech products and Austrian engineering in the international wire and cable industry are central to the global aims of the Austrian
Wire and Cable Machinery Manufacturers´ Association (AWCMA/VOEDKM) .
Since its foundation in 1988 by Dr. Kurt G. Eder, 21 Austrian specialist firms are available to apply state-of-the-art technology to the solution of wire and cable production problems.
During the 2009 Annual General meeting, the following members of the board have been elected in office until end of 2012 :
Members of the board:
President: Dr. Kurt G. EDER (EDER Engineering-Austria)
Vice-President: Mag. Robert EBNER (EBNER Industrieofenbau)
Secretary: Mag. Werner LICHTSCHEIDL (MEDEK&SCHOERNER)
Coordination&Advisor Ing. Siegfried ALTMANN (KNILL Group/ROSENDAHL GmbH)
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November 16th, 2009
- Reports
Brussels Belgium - Bekaert sees Q4 sales matching earlier quarters
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| Belgian steel cord and wire maker Bekaert reported an 11.2 percent drop in nine-month sales on Friday, as expected, and said fourth-quarter sales should be similar to those of previous quarters. Bekaert, whose products are used to reinforce tyres and concrete, has been hit by customer destocking in the battered housing and auto sectors and due to inventory writedowns. Consolidated sales for the first nine months of 2009 came in at 1.82 billion euros ($2.7 billion), exactly in line with the average forecast in a Reuters poll of five analysts. Weak demand in Europe and North America, especially in the automotive and construction markets, led to a sharp drop in sales there during the nine-month period. This was partly offset by strong demand in the Asia-Pacific region, and by the integration of two wire product manufacturing units in Latin America. The group said in a statement that the trend for its automotive-related sales was gradually improving.
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November 16th, 2009
- General
Washington D.C. - US to continue with import curbs on Indian steel wire strand.
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| The US has decided to continue with restrictions on import of a steel product from India and five other countries by way of extra duties on the commodity. The US International Trade Commission (ITC) at its meeting on Tuesday decided to continue with countervailing duty on prestressed concrete steel wire strand from India. It also decided that anti-dumping duties on this product from Brazil, India, Korea, Mexico, Thailand, Japan will continue. All the six members of the Commission supported the decision. ITC has determined that revoking the existing import restrictions on prestressed concrete steel wire strand from India and four other countries would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury within a reasonably foreseeable time, the Commission in a statement.
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November 16th, 2009
- General
Mumbai India - 16 Indian wire maker’s plea for duty-free status sparks US criticism
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| At least two U.S. trade associations and one major aluminum company have filed written objections to an Indian wire manufacturer's petition seeking duty-free treatment. The petition, which has garnered stark opposition from both Noranda Aluminum Inc. and the Aluminum Association, was filed by Mumbai-based Apar Industries Ltd. in an attempt to add aluminum conductor steel reinforced (ACSR) wire from India to the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). The GSP program, which is designed to promote economic growth in the developing world, provides duty-free treatment to more than 7,000 products from eligible countries.
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November 14th, 2009
- Projects
Paris France - Nexans wins 35 million euros submarine power cable project for the French island of La Réunion
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| Nexans, a worldwide leader in the cable industry, has been awarded a 35 million euros turnkey contract by EDF to construct a new submarine power cable for the French island of La Réunion in the Indian Ocean. The cable link will take a subsea route along the coast to connect the power production area located at Le Port in the West of the island to the capital city of Saint-Denis which requires much of the energy. By choosing this subsea cable route, the construction of 20 km of aerial power lines across a natural environment made of rugged, steep and mountainous terrain was avoided.
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November 14th, 2009
- General
Rio de Janeiro Brazil - Bad weather blamed in blackout for 60 million in Brazil but transmission line capacity may be the real culprit.
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| Heavy rain, lightning and strong winds caused blackouts that left nearly a third of Brazilians — 60 million people — in the dark, officials said Wednesday as they scrambled to restore confidence in the country's infrastructure before soccer's 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. The weather made transformers on a vital high-voltage transmission line short-circuit, Brazil's energy minister said. Two other transmission lines also went down as part of an automatic safety mechanism.” The problem was exclusively with the transmission lines," Energy Minister Edison Lobao said. The blackout cut electricity to 18 of Brazil's 26 states and left them without power for up to four hours Tuesday night.
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November 14th, 2009
- General
Beijing China - China steel restructuring plans due by year-end
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| New plans by the Chinese government to restructure the steel sector are expected to be announced by the end of the year, an official said on Thursday. The plans would include new consolidation targets, and a renewed effort to eliminate poor-quality steel capacity, said Jia Yinsong, inspector at the raw materials division of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. "We are now drawing up new policies to deal with all the problems in the industry," he told a conference. China has sought to improve "order" in its fragmented steel industry, with long-standing plans to consolidate the sector under the leadership of its biggest mills.
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November 14th, 2009
- General
Hickory North Carolina - Edwards named president and COO of CommScope
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| Eddie Edwards has been named president and chief operating officer of CommScope, Inc. effective January 1. Edwards will succeed Brian Garrett, who will retire later in 2010 after a 30-year career with the company. Until that time, Garrett will initiate and serve as advisor on several special projects within CommScope. “Eddie is an accomplished leader with an extensive track record of success,” said Frank Drendel, chairman and chief executive officer, CommScope. “He is the perfect choice to continue Brian’s great work and drive CommScope to the next level through profitable growth, innovation and quality.”
Garrett joined CommScope in 1980 as vice president of engineering. He later served as CommScope’s Network Cable Division vice president and general manager, a business he helped launch. Garrett was promoted to executive vice president before being named president and chief operating officer in 1997, the year CommScope attained public ownership after being spun-off from General Instrument Corporation.
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November 13th, 2009
- Product Releases
Milford New Hampshire - Hendrix Wire & Cable introduces larger cable for wind industry.
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| Milford, N.H.-based Hendrix Wire & Cable, a provider of overhead and underground distribution products, is now offering the 1250 KCML underground cable to the wind power industry. The 1250 KCML size is a larger addition to Hendrix's wind offering. According to the company, the larger-size cable is replacing the smaller 1000 KCML cable. The size change correlates to the increase in wind turbine generation capacity, according to Hendrix. The Hendrix 34.5 kV collection grid cables are available in both aluminum and copper conductor. Standard conductor sizes range from 1/0 through 1250 kcmil. Both full and reduced concentric neutral configurations are available. All cable is manufactured in the U.S., made and tested to ICEA/AEIC standards and is dry-cure, triple-extruded.
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November 13th, 2009
- General
Amsterdam The Netherlands - Draka manages fiber infrastructure project for Rwanda's nationwide energy network
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| Draka Communications, a global provider of optical fiber and cabling, is in the deployment phase of a nationwide fiber-optic infrastructure throughout the Republic of Rwanda. The implementation entails running fiber-optic cables along electricity transmission and distribution lines to link all the power plants, substations, and town offices of Rwanda's public power company, including the National Control Centre in the country's capital Kigali. Draka's fiber infrastructure will also interconnect an advanced management system for the country's high- and medium-voltage electrical grid.
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November 13th, 2009
- General
Ruthland Vermont - Carris Reels is relocates its corporate headquarter.
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| Carris Reels is relocating its corporate headquarters from Rutland to the former Citizens Bank building on Main Street. Carris Reels purchased the 10,531-square-foot stone building from Omya Inc. in October and will relocate its corporate offices and its 23 employees from 439 West St. before the end of the year, Carris Reels President Michael Curran said Tuesday. "This building has always been larger than we needed," Curran said, "so an opportunity arose to purchase the other building so we did so." He said the 16,000-square-foot West Street building is owned by Bill Carris, the company's board chairman. Before it was purchased by Carris, the building housed the back-room operations of First Vermont Bank. Carris Reels expects to complete the move to Proctor by mid-December, which will have no effect on the Center Rutland manufacturing operations, Curran said. To visit Carris Reels web site use this link
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November 13th, 2009
- General
Calcutta India - Usha Martin to lower debt and expand capacity of specialty steel.
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| Usha Martin, one of the leading wire rope manufacturers globally, may raise equity to deleverage its balance sheet. The company has about Rs 1,600-crore net debt and its debt-equity ratio stands at 1.61:1. Usha Martin may raise some equity to reduce its debt, most likely in the fourth quarter of this fiscal, after the Rs 2,100-crore expansion project is complete. Rajeev Jhawar, a promoter and the managing director of Usha Martin, said no decision had been taken on any fund-raising plan. “There is no immediate need. But if the company finds it suitable, we may look at raising money for future growth,” he said.
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