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Lakshmi Mittal – The man of steel becomes Man of the Year

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Posted on January 2, 2007 by Stefan Schwarz

Lakshmi MittalMan of the Year for the Financial Times, Business Person of 2006 for The Sunday Times, Gewinner 2006 for Die Welt, Newsmaker of the Year for Time magazine… Media worldwide agree: Lakshmi Mittal is one of the personalities of last year.

During the 2005 Christmas holidays, Lakshmi Mittal started thinking about the possibility of a merger with Arcelor. One year later, Arcelor Mittal is the unrivalled leader of the steel business. According to The Sunday Times, Mr. Mittal has established himself as “a king of the steel industry who is unlikely to be deposed for the foreseeable future.”

Arcelor Mittal headquarters in Luxembourg are “one of Europe’s great temples to business,” says The Sunday Times. For this newspaper, Lakshmi Mittal “richly deserves” to be Business Person of 2006. “It is his arrival at the Luxembourg palace, and how he got there, that separated Mittal from a strong field of contenders for our annual award,” the British newspaper states.

In a year replete with deals, the Arcelor Mittal merger is seen as one of the biggest, the most audacious, and the most loaded with meaning. That is why the Financial Times has chosen Lakshmi Mittal as Man of the Year.

The business daily recalls how over the last three decades Mittal has assembled, from the ground up, by far the world’s biggest steel company. “Mr. Mittal was just about the only person in the business to realise that earnings could be boosted through a process of consolidation.”

For the Financial Times, Lakshmi Mittal is a “truly global person” who “enjoys a challenge – from skiing uphill to building the world’s largest steel group in a series of daring raids.” The newspaper adds that Mittal is invariably calm and inspires “tremendous loyalty among his key staff.”

Interested in reading more?

Financial Times (PDF) “Man of steel with a showman’s flair for flying in the face of the improbable”
TIME Magazine Online “A man of mettle”
Sunday Times (PDF) “Year when Mittal proved his mettle”


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10 comments


  • January 10th, 2007 by André Smit

    And VEB Netherlands



  • January 10th, 2007 by Krunal Odedra

    Lakshmi Mittal truly deserves all the business awards because no one has ever reached at $29 billion in just 16 years. Its beyond everyones imagination. He is the Hero of the people who follow BUSINESS and now has become the Hero of INDIA.



  • January 13th, 2007 by M

    An example that a single mind with his team ditters all odds and take on the so-called Western hegemony in Business. Many more such good bold examples to follow Mr Mittal.



  • January 17th, 2007 by Diomedes

    I do not doubt Mr.Mittal deserves all these honors and more. He represents the strength of a country and has taught us Europeans a lesson on entrepreneurship. While the old guard slumbered on their couches, still drowsy with the government-owned company ways and trying to piece together a group of diverse and to-be-integrated companies, Mr.Mittal made a daring move, shaking the industry from its sleep. He was underestimated and insulted, but nevertheless he achieved his goal, and for that he deserves applause.

    But the time for cheering is over. Mittal has paid handsomely for Arcelor and investors will be demanding payback. The challenge is enormous and these days of wine and roses will soon be over. Sooner or later the steel industry will face another downturn and then this great group will be tested. Today’s conditions may hide many of our inefficiencies, but that will not last long.

    Already we have spent precious months deciding the who is who on the top three tiers of our organization and meanwhile competition is feeding on our indecision. It’s time to get to work, time to give the people on the front line the tools they need to keep the business running and to demonstrate the advantages of being the leader.



  • January 19th, 2007 by deepak shah

    Mr.Mittal honestly deserves business awards.He represents the strength like steel.As a Indian we have a proud about your ability.You have a vision and goal.Please establish your empire in India also.Please make somthing for the uplifting society in such a manner which no one has done in past and only one Indian can prove by some dedication.

    I am regularly receiving messages from your media centre.

    Warm regards

    deepak Shah
    Sr.Manager Commercial
    Mudra Communications Private Limited
    Ahmedabad
    India
    m09374069591



  • January 22nd, 2007 by Lurs

    I do not undertsand that such a man who did not respect most of the things he decided himself can be the man of the year. What about the MOU ? What about the respect of governance principles ? What about the Liege blast furnances ? And so on …
    Oh, i’ve forgotten that the mittal-arcelor value has increased on the main stock exchanges places, NYSE, Paris, Rotterdam … OK, now i understand.
    Regards



  • February 1st, 2007 by Ian

    Great man



  • February 9th, 2007 by giovanni tomasello

    Abbiamo la possibilita’ di prendere in concessione importantissime miniere di ferro in AFRICA previo un Vostro mandato.



  • January 20th, 2008 by Jesse Medari

    COURAGE, COURAGE, COURAGE!!!
    GO MATTAL, WHAT AN ACCOMPLISHMENT!!!

    Jesse Medari
    Branson, Missouri
    USA



  • October 6th, 2010 by R.K.VIKAS

    Mr. Mittal has the Business Blood and ofcourse Shani Grah has supported him along with his Business team.
    He is there with ALL IZ WELL… and he made the World understand that INDIAN economy and Power can rule World economy with Honesty.

    Well Done Mr. Mittal and Best of Luck for Future.

    Best Wishes & Regards,

    R.K.Vikas
    91 9911277201
    rkvikas@rediffmail.com




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