Mittal may raise Arcelor bid by 2 bn euros

LUXEMBOURG: Decision time was looming for Arcelor as marathon talks intensified on Saturday over an improved offer from fellow steel giant Mittal Steel, which could end a lengthy saga that has rocked the corporate world, sources said.

The different parties, which also include Russia's Severstal, have been negotiating non-stop for several days. The talks have intensified in recent hours having lasted all night, the sources said.

Arcelor's board will hold a meeting on Sunday to decide on competing offers from Mittal, owned by Indian billionaire Lakshmi Mittal, and from Severstal.

Arcelor rejected Netherlands-based Mittal's 25.8 billion euro (32.3 billion dollar) hostile bid, but may finally accept Mittal's advances if the offer is hiked substantially, the same sources said.

The Financial Times said Mittal's offer might be raised by up to two billion euros. If accepted, the deal would create the world's biggest steelmaker with an output three times larger than its nearest rival.

Russia's Severstal, meanwhile, with which Arcelor proposed a merger widely seen as making the combined company too big for Mittal to swallow, remains involved in the talks, the sources said.

A number of Arcelor shareholders oppose the suggested Severstal deal.