Worthington Reports Steel Processing JV in China

Worthington Industries, Inc.

announced today it has reached an agreement in principle to participate in a joint venture near Shanghai, China to produce cold rolled strip steel primarily for the automotive industry. Worthington will join Nisshin Steel Co., Ltd. (Nisshin) and Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc. (MISI) in the venture which will be called Zhejiang Nisshin Worthington Precision Specialty Steel Co., Ltd. Worthington will own a 10 percent stake in the joint venture with the option to increase ownership and Japanese partners Nisshin and MISI will own 55 and 35 percent respectively. The formal agreement is expected to be signed by the end of the month.