Citing what it calls the "current reality of weak automotive production in the United States," steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. plans a temporary idling of some operations at its Dearborn, Michigan, plant, resulting in the layoff of about 600 employees this summer.

Cliffs has announced plans to temporarily stop operations at two of its mines in Minnesota. As a result, about 630 workers will be temporarily laid off, the company said. The Cleveland-based steel manufacturer last week alerted Minnesota officials of its plan to idle the Minorca Mine in Virginia,

Facing a slowdown among their large automotive clients, the leaders of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. have in recent days said they will idle two plants in Minnesota and another in Michigan and lay off roughly 1,200 workers.