Kazakhstan / ArcelorMittal / 2,000 jobs cut

ArcelorMittal, expects output at its Kazakhstan mill, which relied on Iran for a third of its business before Western sanctions were imposed, to fall again in 2013 and will shed about 2,000 jobs to cut costs.

Shipments at the world’s largest steelmaker’s Temirtau site dropped to 2.8 million tonnes last year from 3.2 million in 2011, the company said on Friday, adding this year’s steel shipments were seen at 2.75 million tonnes.

Last year’s lower output was attributed to the impact of Western financial sanctions on Iran as well as a fire in May at a plant that feeds its blast furnaces.

“We expect that the market situation will be unfavourable this year,” a company spokesman told Reuters by telephone from Temirtau. He declined to elaborate.

Choosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor from

via ArcelorMittal Kazakh unit sees 2,000 jobs cut as output falls – The Economic Times.