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Slovakian Competition Policy for Entry Into European Union Expected to Have No Significant Impact on U. S. Steel KosicePRNewswire-FirstCall United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X) announced today that the tax credit limit negotiated as part of the Competition Policy chapter required for the Slovak Republic's entry into the European Union is expected to have minimal impact on its wholly owned subsidiary U. S. Steel Kosice (USSK). The Tax Investment Incentive Program granted to USSK, which was one of the issues to be resolved in negotiations, has been accepted and limits the total tax credit to be granted to USSK during the period from 2000 through 2009 to $500 million. The impact of the tax credit limits is expected to be minimal since Slovak tax laws have been modified and tax rates have been reduced. The agreement also places limits on total production and sales, allowing for modest growth during the period covered by the investment incentive. The base period used to establish the limits on production and sales is 2001. Since USSK operated at near capacity during this period, allowing for normal maintenance, the company does not believe the agreement will have a significant impact on USSK production during subsequent periods. "We believe the results of the negotiations are fair and equitable and will allow U. S. Steel Kosice to grow at a rate consistent with our plan and to continue our move to value-added products," said John H. Goodish, president of U. S. Steel Kosice. "We will also continue to honor our commitments to the Slovak government and our obligations to the community." USSK is a wholly owned subsidiary of United States Steel Corporation. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America, U. S. Steel is engaged in the production, sale and transportation of sheet, plate, tin mill and tubular steel mill products, coke, taconite pellets and coal; the management of mineral resources; real estate development; and engineering and consulting services in the United States and through USSK is engaged in the production and sale of steel products in Central Europe. The statement that this agreement will not significantly impact USSK's performance during the exemption period is a forward looking statement. Some factors, among others, that could affect USSK's future performance include excess world supply, future product demand, prices and mix, global and company steel production, plant operating performance, energy prices and usage, currency fluctuations and tariffs. In accordance with "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, cautionary statements identifying important factors, but not necessarily all factors, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements have been included in the Form 10-K of U. S. Steel for the year ended December 31, 2001, and in subsequent filings for U. S. Steel. For more information about U. S. Steel visit our web site at www.ussteel.com. SOURCE: United States Steel Corporation CONTACT: John Armstrong, +1-412-433-6792, or Mike Dixon, Web site: http://www.ussteel.com/ Company News On-Call: |
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