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In a move to add aluminum wire to its electrical offerings, General Cable Corp., Highland Heights, Ky., has agreed to acquire Alcan Cable, the Atlanta-based manufacturer of wire and cable owned by Rio Tinto Plc, for $185 million in cash.
Over the past century, the two companies grew up as competitors on opposite sides of debate over copper versus aluminum wire. Copper holds about 78 percent of the U.S. market for insulated wire and cable, according to the Copper Development Association,...