April 23, 2003 - Kobe Steel sells company-owned property


TOKYO (April 23, 2003) – Kobe Steel, Ltd. announced today that it had sold company-owned dormitories and apartments, which provide housing for employees, to K&L Investment. The transfer price was 3.85 billion yen.

Kobe Steel has been making strong efforts to improve its financial position by reducing its interest-bearing liabilities (debt). In the fiscal year ended March 2003, Kobe Steel's consolidated debt is expected to be 970 billion yen, down 25 percent from the year ended March 2000.

To help further reduce its debt, Kobe Steel decided to sell a portion of its fixed assets. Following the asset transfer, Kobe Steel will lease back the housing.

The transaction is anticipated to incur an extraordinary loss of 1.68 billion yen. While using the housing units will result in leasing expenses, Kobe Steel would be able to avoid the potential risk of lower land values and would benefit from lower debt.




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