Posted by
Fin on Wednesday, December 02, 2009 7:18:53 AM
The Wuhan Iron &&8; Steel Group, a Chinese steelmaker, agreed to pay $400 million for a stake in Brazil&S217;s MMX Mineracao e Metalicos to broaden its supply of iron ore. Wuhan Steel, based in Hubei province, will appoint two board members to MMX and become the second-biggest shareholder of the Brazilian company with a 21.52 percent stake, the Chinese company said. MMX, which is based in Rio de Janeiro, has a market value of 3.7 billion reais ($2.1 billion), according to Bloomberg data. China, the world&S217;s biggest steel producer, is investing in iron-ore projects globally to reduce dependence on Vale, the Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton pay day loan lenders. Wuhan Iron and EBX, MMX&S217;s holding company, also signed an accord to build a steel plant in Brazil, said a Wuhan Steel spokesman, Bai Fang.
World Business Briefing | the Americas: Brazil: Chinese Buy Stake in MMX Steel