Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN): de símbolo da industrialização brasileira à holding

The paper presents an interpretation about organizational and strategic changes of the National Steel Company (CSN), a company created in 1945 by the Brazilian state and symbol of the country's industrialization. The discussion is part of a research project whose purpose is to comprehend the recent trajectory of the company, its relations with the state and their efforts to compete in a globalized scenario. The fundamental question that guided this paper was whether the steel business remains the core business of the company and its positioning in the global market for the production and marketing of steel. This exploratory research uses the approach of production networks to interpret the geo-economic relations resulting from globalization. The study supports the notion that between the date of foundation and the eighties, the company focused all its efforts to improve and modernize its steel production unit, installed in the city of Volta Redonda - RJ, city located in the main development shaft of the country. The data show that there were first transition of business, local and national to a transnational business corporation. A second transition from steel to mining is underway, but the result is not yet clear, because of the high interdependence between sectors.