04 February 2013, Moscow. NLMK (LSE: NLMK), a leading global steel company, announces that S&P published an update leaving NLMK’s credit rating unchanged  at  investment grade ('BBB-', negative outlook).

The agency underlines that NLMK’s ratings reflect S&P’s view on the company's superior cost position, high degree of vertical integration into low cost iron ore, and the wide diversity of its product and regional markets. However, as constraining factors, the agency sees, among others, the cyclicality of the global steel sector and the country risk associated with operating in the Russian Federation.