Tata Steel lines up financing for take over of Corus

LONDON, Oct 8: India's Tata Steel Ltd has lined up .5 billion of financing for any takeover bid for Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus Group Plc , the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported.

The paper said Tata Steel had secured the funding from its advisers, ABN Amro and Deutsche Bank, and Standard Chartered.

On Thursday, Tata Steel said it was considering a takeover bid for Corus. The potential bid follows Mittal Steel's billion acquisition of rival Arcelor this year, underscoring growing appetite by cash-rich steelmakers to cut costs by merging with rivals.

Global steelmakers are under pressure to cut costs and become more competitive as China switches from a net importer to exporter of steel.

Corus, created through the merger of Dutch firm Hoogovens and British Steel in 1999, agreed in March to sell most of its aluminium assets in a deal which analysts said paved the way for the company to take part in steel-market consolidation.

REUTERS