General Steel to raise $25 mln via share sale

* To sell shrs to institutional investors

* To use proceeds for general corporate purposes

* Shares down as much as 22 pct

Dec 24  - Chinese steel products maker General Steel Holdings Inc (GSI.N) said it agreed with institutional investors to sell shares and warrants at a discount to raise about $25 million, sending its shares down as much as 22 percent.

General Steel will offer 5.6 million common shares and warrants to buy up to 2.8 million common shares, in units priced at $4.50 apiece, it said in a statement.

Each unit will consist of one common share and a two-and-a-half year warrant to buy one half of a common share.

The warrants can be exercised at $5 per share starting 6 months and one day of closing.

General Steel said it intends to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions of new businesses and investments.

Rodman & Renshaw is the lead placement agent for the transaction, the company said.

Shares of the company, which touched a low of $4.52, were trading down 20 percent at $4.65 in early morning trade Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Krishna N. Das in Bangalore; Editing by Unnikrishnan Nair)