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Another good steel news bump.

Hogwash.
Mergers and Acquisitions lead to consolidation, downsizing of capacity and less competition.

It verges on an act of Treason that George W. Bush would dictate to American private industry that they must "restructure" and yield productive capacity to foreign "competition". In doing so, he reduces our domestic steel making capabilities in a fashion that Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, Tojo, Kruschev and Mao could only dream of. George W. Bush is a malevolent enemy of American steel production surpassing even the green-weenie intentions of Algore.

U.S. Steel could increase production capacity by as much as 40 percent and expects a combined annual cost savings of about $170 million within two years of purchase, company officials said. Savings will come from a reduction in redundant overhead, transportation costs and an improved labor contract, company officials said.

Sounds like they plan on continuing running National Steel to me, which is a lot better than letting them go bankrupt and the workers there and in associated industries lose their jobs. I believe National does a lot of business with the auto companies and suppliers. So its good news for Detroit also.

Willie, please cheer up. We've seen two great announcements this week that will rescue a big chunk of American Steel capacity from bankruptcy court and the wrecking ball. Plants like Coatesville and Steelton and Ecorse that many thought were doomed are going to be renewed by forward thinking new management, freed of the burdens that previous policy directions had placed upon them.

Let me ask you, can you name any president since the 1960's (hell, the 1920's) who has shown a personal interest in the continued health of the American Steel industry, like President Bush has and worked to bring it around to profitability? What did KKKlintoon do while we watched mill after mill go bankrupt and/or be shuttered forever?

We neither need nor want the Steel Industry of 1973 back again. Even with imports (much of which by volume is low value raw slabs to inland plants like AK Middletown that provide port and railway jobs given that we do not have sufficient iron ore domestically), we use much less steel now for a much larger economy, than we did 20 and 30 years ago. We have a much more mechanized and efficient steel industry now, and we can compete as President Bush levels the playing field through Tarriffs and the PBGC. You watch!

I'm bullish on our future.