More mergers and partnerships

摘要

In this difficult market more mills are seeing the virtues in partnerships and full mergers. NKK and Kawasaki announced completion of their basic merger agreement on Christmas Eve. Instead of a fanciful name on the lines of the new European giant, they have chosen to be known by the initials JFE, which the presidents of the merged companies explained, can stand for several different, equally significant, words. The holding company will be incorporated by October 2002 and an outline management structure ahs already been sketched out.