U.S. Steel Corp. will idle the No. 14 blast furnace at its Gary (Ind.) Works and one of two blast furnaces at its Granite City (Ill.) Works beginning next month, company executives said Tuesday.

The move to idle the Gary furnace, the company's largest blast furnace, has been rumored in the industry for several weeks, although company executives declined to confirm the plans until Tuesday, when U.S. Steel released its third-quarter earnings results (see related story, page 10).

John P. Surma, chairman and chief executive officer of the nation's largest integrated steel producer, said a combination of factors led the company to idle the two furnaces during...