IN BRIEF (Page 14)

Iron merger

Sinosteel Corp, China's second biggest iron ore trader, may support a proposed merger between Midwest Corp and Murchison Metals Ltd, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a source close to the deal.

Some concerns surrounding Murchison are weighing on Sinosteel's decision, the Journal said yesterday. Sinosteel, battling Murchison for control of Midwest, raised its stake in the iron-ore producer to 40.1 percent, the newspaper said.