NATION

NATION
U.S. Steel eliminatesmanagement positions
PITTSBURGH -- U.S. Steel Corp. said it has cut about 20 percent of its executive management positions, a critical part of a deal with Steelworkers that cinched the acquisition of bankrupt National Steel last month.
Three U.S. Steel vice presidents -- Charles Carson, Thomas W. Goettge and Donald L. Foster -- will retire at the end of June, the company said. U.S. Steel previously announced the retirement of another executive, the vice president for raw materials and transportation. The positions will not be filled, the company said.
Mortgage rateshit record low
WASHINGTON -- Mortgage rates around the country tumbled to new lows this week, good news for people looking to buy homes or refinance.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped to a record low of 5.26 percent for the week ending June 5, Freddie Mac, the mortgage giant, reported Thursday. For 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, rates fell to a record low of 4.66 percent this week.
W.Va. to provide loanto Wheeling-Pittsburgh
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The state Economic Development Authority agreed Thursday to provide a $9.5 million loan package to help Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. emerge from bankruptcy.
The state will provide $6.5 million in loans and guarantee another $3 million the company plans to borrow from the Royal Bank of Canada.
The company has a June 30 deadline for emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and claiming a $250 million loan package from the federal Emergency Steel Loan Guarantee Board.
Verizon surrendersnames of suspects
NEW YORK -- Verizon Communications Inc. reluctantly surrendered to the music industry on Thursday the names of four Internet subscribers suspected of illegally offering free song downloads, but vowed to keep fighting the law that forced its hand.
Verizon was compelled to give up the names Wednesday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for Washington, D.C., which rejected the telecom giant's request for a stay while it appeals a lower court decision won by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Associated Press