U.S. Steel has said that it plans to idle the East Chicago tin plant in Indiana by mid-November as part of the consolidation of its till mill operations in the United States, a move which could result in lay-offs for nearly 150 employees.

Reports have indicated that the steelmaker blamed high levels of low-priced imports for its decision to consolidate work at East Chicago Tin facility into the ones at Gary Works and the Midwest Plant in Northwest Indiana.