Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. Added to S&P 500 Index

CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) (Paris: CLF) announced today that Standard & Poor's has issued a press release stating that it will add Cliffs to the S&P 500 Index. Cliffs' shares will be added to the Index effective Dec. 18, 2009, after the market closes.

The S&P 500 Index is the world's most followed stock market index and serves as a benchmark for the U.S. equity market as a whole, as well as for individual industry groups and corporations. Criteria for selection include being representative of the indicator's market sector and market capitalization range. Cliffs also will be added to the S&P 500 GICS Steel Sub-Industry index.

"We are gratified by our selection to the S&P 500. We believe this testifies to the value Cliffs has created for its shareholders as it continues to execute a strategy designed to achieve scale in the mining industry and serve the world's largest and fastest growing steel markets," said Laurie Brlas, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Cliffs.

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http://www.cpg-llc.com/clearsite/clf/emailoptin.html

About Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.

Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF) (Paris: CLF) is an international mining and natural resources company. We are the largest producer of iron ore pellets in North America, a major supplier of direct-shipping lump and fines iron ore out of Australia and a significant producer of metallurgical coal. With core values of environmental and capital stewardship, our colleagues across the globe endeavor to provide all stakeholders operating and financial transparency as embodied in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework. Our Company is organized through three geographic business units:

The North American business unit is comprised of six iron ore mines owned or managed in Michigan, Minnesota and Eastern Canada, and two coking coal mining complexes located in West Virginia and Alabama. The Asia Pacific business unit is comprised of two iron ore mining complexes in Western Australia and a 45% economic interest in a coking and thermal coal mine in Queensland, Australia. The South American business unit includes a 30% interest in the Amapa Project, an iron ore project in the state of Amapa in Brazil.

Over recent years, Cliffs has been executing a strategy designed to achieve scale in the mining industry and focused on serving the world's largest and fastest growing steel markets.

News releases and other information on the Company are available on the Internet at:

http://www.cliffsnaturalresources.com

News releases and other information on the Company are available on the Internet at:

http://www.cliffsnaturalresources.com or

www.cliffsnaturalresources.com/Investors/Pages/default.aspx?b=1041&1=1

    Source: Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.

Released December 14, 2009