The new firm will be called Arcelor-Mittal and its base will be in Luxembourg. Mittal will be the president and Arcelor's Kinsch will be the chairman.
LUXEMBOURG: Steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal will celebrate on Monday his victory in a takeover battle that will merge the world's two biggest steelmakers, Mittal Steel and Arcelor.
Mittal is due to hold a news conference at 1130 GMT on Monday in Luxembourg followed by a conference call with investors and analysts at 1330 GMT.
On Sunday, Arcelor bowed to an improved 25.6 billion euro ($32.21 billion) takeover bid from Mittal Steel to create a world giant three times larger than its nearest rival.
Shares in Arcelor are likely to resume trading on Monday. They were suspended on Wednesday as the group grappled over giving in to Mittal or sticking to its plan of merging with Russia's Severstal instead.
Mittal shares were up about 2 percent at 25.75 euros in early trade, bouyed by the deal that also pushed up stock in other steelmakers such as Germany's ThyssenKrupp, which was up 1.7 percent at 26.25 euros.
In a five-month battle, Arcelor resisted Mittal's advances. Its tactics to thwart the take over included a 6.5 billion-euro share buyback and the plan to merge with Severstal.
But it was forced to the negotiating table after minority shareholders rebelled against the planned Russian deal.
On Sunday, after a nine-hour board meeting, Arcelor's directors unanimously accepted Mittal's improved cash-and-stock offer worth 40.40 euros a share.
Arcelor Chairman Joseph Kinsch said the improved bid was a 10 per cent premium over the previous offer.
The new company, which will be called Arcelor-Mittal and will be based in Luxembourg, will create synergies of $1.6 billion through purchasing, marketing and manufacturing efficiencies.
Mittal, the world's third richest man, will be president, and Arcelor's Kinsch will be chairman until he retires next year.
No mention was made of the fate of Arcelor Chief Executive Guy Dolle. The Mittal family will hold 43.4 per cent of the company.
The combined company will produce about 10 percent of the world's steel and have a joint turnover of some 55 billion euros and a total worldwide staff of 334,000, according to 2005 data.
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