US President Joe Biden has decided to block Japan's Nippon Steel's possible acquisition of US steelmaker U.S. Steel, Reuters and the Washington Post have learned. According to the source, Biden is expected to announce the decision on Friday. The US president has repeatedly stated that he is against the acquisition.
He has said that he finds it crucial that U.S. Steel be owned and operated in the United States. According to anonymous officials, the decision is being made despite advisers expressing concerns that blocking the acquisition could damage relations between the United States and Japan.
In March 2024, U.S. Steel announced that it had reached an agreement to be acquired by Japan's Nippon Steel for $14.9 billion. This corresponds to around 108 billion kroner.
The acquisition was then placed in the hands of the US Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS). The body is led by the US Treasury Department and is tasked with assessing the national security implications of foreign acquisitions of US companies. In September, the Biden administration extended CFIUS' review and postponed the committee's conclusion until after the presidential election in early November.
After the expected conclusion of CFIUS' review, two anonymous sources told the Washington Post in late December that CFIUS had not reached a consensus on whether Japan's Nippon Steel's potential acquisition of U.S. Steel threatens US national security. A White House spokesperson then stated that they had received CFIUS's investigation and that the president would review it.
This meant that the current president, Joe Biden, could block the deal. Neither U.S. Steel or Nippon Steel has reacted to the reports of Biden's decision early Friday morning Danish time. However, a crisis-stricken U.S. Steel has previously claimed that the acquisition is necessary if sufficient investment is to be made in the company's factories in Mon Valley, located in the US state of Pennsylvania. The steel producer has claimed that the factories may be forced to close if the sale is prevented.
jel /ritzau/
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