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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON D.C. 20549
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FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (date of earliest event reported): December 20, 2000
CLEVELAND-CLIFFS INC
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(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
OHIO 1-8944 34-1464672
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(State or other jurisdiction (Commission (IRS Employer
of incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)
1100 Superior Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44114
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (216-694-5700)
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(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
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ITEM 9. REGULATION FD DISCLOSURE.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc published a News Release on December 20, 2000 with
respect to Sales and Earnings Expectations as follows:
CLEVELAND-CLIFFS LOWERS FOURTH QUARTER
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SALES AND EARNINGS EXPECTATIONS
Cleveland, OH - December 20, 2000 - Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (NYSE:CLF)
reported today that it expects iron ore pellet sales will be about 2.5 million
tons in the fourth quarter and 10.3 million tons for the full year. Sales were
previously projected to be between 3.2 and 3.5 million tons in the quarter and
11.0 and 11.3 million tons for the full year. Year-end pellet inventory is
projected to exceed 3 million tons and will be utilized to meet sales
commitments in 2001 and 2002. The Company said it now expects to record a small
loss in the fourth quarter.
John S. Brinzo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, "The
reduction in fourth quarter shipments is a reflection of deteriorating
fundamentals in the North American steel industry. Weak order books,
attributable to slowing economies in the US and Canada and high volumes of steel
imports, have caused a number of Cliffs' steel company customers to curtail
their raw steel output in the fourth quarter."
Brinzo added "While conditions in the iron and steel industry are
expected to remain difficult in the first half of 2001, we anticipate an
improvement in Cliffs' year 2001 results compared to 2000 due to higher pellet
sales volume, including significant sales under our new contract with LTV
Corporation, and a reduction in losses from Cliffs and Associates Limited (CAL),
our reduced iron venture in Trinidad and Tobago. On November 20, Cliffs and
Lurgi completed the previously announced acquisition of LTV's 46.5 percent
interest in CAL. Modifications to the Trinidad plant, which are on schedule and
on budget, are expected to permit a restart of the plant in the first quarter of
2001. In recent weeks, CIRCAL(TM) briquettes produced last summer were trial
tested in two US electric furnaces. The trials were a success and demonstrated
the high quality of CIRCAL(TM) briquettes."
* * * * ** * *
Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest supplier of iron ore products to the
North American steel industry and is developing a significant ferrous metallics
business. Subsidiaries of the Company manage six iron ore mines in North America
and hold equity interests in five of the mines. Cliffs has a major iron ore
reserve position in the United States and is a substantial iron ore merchant.
References in this news release to "Cliffs" and "Company" include subsidiaries
and affiliates as appropriate in the context.
This news release contains predictive statements that are intended to
be made as "forward-looking" within the safe harbor protections of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Although the Company believes that its
forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements
are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially
from such statements for a
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variety of factors; such as displacement of iron production by North American
integrated steel producers due to electric furnace production or imports of
semi-finished steel or pig iron; changes in the financial condition of the
Company's partners and/or customers; changes in imports of steel, iron ore, or
ferrous metallic products; changes due to CAL's ability to forecast revenue
rates, costs and production levels; domestic or international economic and
political conditions; major equipment failure, availability and magnitude and
duration of repairs; process difficulties, including the failure of new
technology to perform as anticipated; and availability and cost of key
components of production (e.g., labor, electric power, fuel, water).
Reference is made to the detailed explanation of the many factors and
risks that may cause such predictive statements to turn out differently as set
forth in the Company's 1999 Annual Report and Reports on Form 10-K and 10-Q and
previous news releases filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which
are available on Cliffs' web site. The information contained in this document
speaks as of the date of this news release and may be superceded by subsequent
events.
Cliffs will release fourth quarter results on Wednesday, January 31,
2001, and will host a conference call the following morning, February 1, at
10:00 a.m. EST. The call will be broadcast live on Cliffs' website at
http://www.cleveland-cliffs.com
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act of
1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by
the undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.
CLEVELAND-CLIFFS INC
By: /s/ C. B. Bezik
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Name: C. B. Bezik
Title: Senior Vice President-Finance
Dated: December 21, 2000
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