Luxembourg - ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer, said Wednesday it is to cut costs by 4 billion dollars.

The cost reduction was to be achieved over the next five years, the company said Wednesday in Luxembourg, with 600 million dollars to be saved in human resources.

The strategy included an increase in productivity, a cut in jobs through early retirement schemes, natural turnover and "targeted rationalization," head of finance Aditya Mittal said at an investor conference in London.

More exact figures were not stated.

The price of shares in ArcelorMittal rose by 3 per cent to 44 euros (62 dollars).

The company today employs more than 320,000 people in more than 60 countries.

ArcelorMittal plans to cut down energy costs by 0.8 billion dollars and save another 0.9 billion by quality improvements.

The largest item in the cost-saving strategy is the reduction of raw material costs by 1.2 billion dollars. This is to be achieved by improving purchase conditions and investments in production processes.

The corporation was formed in 2006 after the merger of Mittal Steel and Arcelor and listed consolidation synergies of 1.6 billion dollars for the first quarter 2008. (dpa)