Nippon Steel, rivals join hands to thwart hostile bids

摘要

Nippon Steel Corp, the world's third-largest steelmaker, said it will work with two of its competitors in Japan to thwart hostile takeover bids. Kobe Steel Ltd, Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd and Nippon Steel will study "counter measures in the event that an unsolicited offer is made to one of the three companies," they said in a statement released in Tokyo on Wednesday. The companies, which already own stakes in one another, are not studying a merger, said Nobuyoshi Fujiwara, executive vice president of Nippon Steel.