Kirby Adams, the new chief executive of Corus, the Anglo-Dutch steelmaker, has a lot on his plate. While struggling to cope with the worst dip in global steel demand for more than 60 years, he is working frantically to rescue a deal to sell one of the company’s biggest plants.

Mr Adams – who holds both American and Australian passports and had not previously worked in Europe – took over at the helm of Corus early last month. The steelmaker is owned by Tata, the Indian industrial conglomerate.