Venezuela nationalizes steel industry

CARACAS, Venezuela (CNN) - President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela signed a decree Wednesday that orders the nationalization of the country's leading steel producer.

Chavez nationalized Sidor, a steel making company, a Venezuelan government official told CNN. The Argentine company Ternium owns the majority of shares in Sidor, according to a report about Chavez's decision in the Venezuelan-based Bolivariana News Agency.

The leftist administration of Chavez has nationalized companies from several industries.