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SEOUL - Arcelor Mittal, the world's biggest steel maker, could be interested in making a hostile takeover of South Korean steel maker POSCO Co Ltd, the Korea Economic Daily said on Friday.
Citing an unnamed POSCO executive, the paper reported that a senior Arcelor Mittal executive expressed interest in POSCO's M&A strategy when he visited Seoul last month to meet POSCO chief executive Lee Ku-taek.
"That means that Arcelor Mittal has put POSCO on its M&A target list," the POSCO executive told the newspaper.
"The top management is pondering how to react to a potential hostile takeover bid," the paper quoted the source as saying.
At Thursday's close of 388,500 won POSCO is worth 33.87 trillion won ($52.25 billion).
POSCO, the world's third-largest steel maker, has a fragmented, foreign dominated share ownership and is seen by some as a prime target for a takeover in the wave of global consolidation that began last year when Mittal bought Arcelor to create Arcelor Mittal.
A POSCO spokeswoman could not confirm the report immediately.
- REUTERS
