ThyssenKrupp Steel AG expects it will be able cut its iron ore bill by considerably more than one third in ongoing negotiations with its suppliers, a spokesman for the steel unit of German industrial conglomerate ThyssenKrupp AG said on Tuesday.
"We haven't yet reached an agreement, but we expect our iron ore prices will decline by considerably more than one third, including shipping costs," the spokesman said.
Earlier this month, ThyssenKrupp Chief Executive Ekkehard Schulz said the company was aiming to halve iron ore prices in negotiations with its suppliers.
The spokesman's comments came in response to a deal struck between Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto PLC (RTP) and Nippon Steel Corp. that cut iron ore fines prices for the Japanese steelmaker by 33%.
He declined to specify when the talks with iron ore producers will be concluded.
"Talks could end pretty soon, but they could also drag on for several weeks," he said.
The Rio Tinto-Nippon deal is the first this year and could become the benchmark for the other two big miners, BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) and Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (RIO), which are continuing negotiations with steel mills.
Source: Dow Jones
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