Metal One Acquires Additional Shares of Usiminas, Brazil

Metal One Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Moriji Kanada) raised the ratio of its share holding in Usiminas from 0.06% to 0.15%, when it signed a new inter-shareholder agreement with Usiminas on November 6. Metal One, as one of the member companies of the Mitsubishi Corporation Group, constitutes the Nippon Group together with Nippon Usiminas Co., Ltd. and Nippon Steel Corporation, under the inter-shareholder agreement.

In terms of votes, the Nippon Group's shareholding ratios in Usiminas have increased as follows:

Before Now Nippon Usiminas 19.39% 21.56% Nippon Steel 0% 1.71% Mitsubishi Corp. Group (MC Development) (Metal One) (Carlos Loureiro) 1.32% (0.11%) (0.06%) (0.15%) 1.45% (1.20%) (0.15%) (0.10%) Total of Nippon Group: 20.71% 24.72%

Since 1991, Metal One has also been operating a coil center named Rio Negro as a joint venture with Usiminas in Brazil (shares: Metal One, 30%; Usiminas, 64%).

<For supplementary reference>
Outline of Usiminas
Usiminas was established in 1958 and received Japanese financial and technical assistance, mainly through Nippon Usiminas and Nippon Steel. It was privatized in 1991, became a subsidiary of Companhia Siderurgica Paulista (Cosipa) in 1993, and is now one of the leading steelmakers in South America in terms of production capacity, technical level and competitiveness. Since 1999, Usiminas has, along with Nippon Steel, been jointly operating a company called UNIGAL, which manufactures hot dipped galvanized steel sheet for automotive use.
1.	Name:	Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais S.A. (abbreviated as USIMINAS)
2.	Lines of business:	Manufacture and sales of steel products mainly in South America
3.	Location	Headquarters: Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil Steel mills: Ipatinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil;   Cubatao, São Paulo, Brazil
4.	President:	Rinaldo Campos Soares
5.	Capitalization:	24 million reals
6.	Consolidated sales:	13.041 billion reals (in FY2005)
7.	Consolidated after-tax profit:	3.918 billion reals (in FY2005)
8.	Crude steel production:	8.66 million tonnes (in FY2005)