Prompted by continued inventory adjustments in the markets it serves, Mittal Steel USA will slow down iron production in a continued effort to adjust output.

The company started cooling C-6 Furnace at its Cleveland plant in preparation for gunning of refractory material to shore up its lining. This routine maintenance work was originally scheduled to take place in June. Normally, the furnace produces about 1,500 tons of iron daily.

The company also announced that it is idling its H-3 Blast Furnace on the west side of the Indiana Harbor plant in East Chicago, Ind. The company says it will return the furnace to production when business conditions demand its 2,000-ton-a-day output. No. 6 blast furnace on Indiana Harbor 's east side has been idle since March.

"The underlying economy is still strong," said Louis L. Schorsch, CEO of Mittal Steel USA. "However, the excess inventory in the distribution sector that was built up in the last half of 2004 is still being worked down. Given that, it is appropriate that we adjust our production and use this opportunity to undertake necessary maintenance and improvements."

Employees in the affected operations will be shifted to undertake key maintenance and other activities at their plants.

Mittal Steel USA consists of Ispat Inland Inc. and Mittal Steel USA ISG Inc., which are subsidiaries of Mittal Steel Co. NV, the world's most global steel company. Formed from the combination of Ispat International NV, LNM Holdings NV and International Steel Group Inc., Mittal Steel has steelmaking operations in 14 countries, on four continents. For the 12 months that ended Dec. 31, 2004, Mittal Steel had revenues of approximately $22 billion and steel shipments of 42 million tons. Mittal Steel encompasses all aspects of modern steelmaking to produce a comprehensive portfolio of both flat and long steel products to meet a wide range of customer needs.