President Biden announced Friday that he is blocking Japan's Nippon Steel $15 billion offer buy us steel Recently a government panel failed to reach consensus on the potential national security risks of the deal.
Mr Biden said his decision was aimed at protecting the country's security and infrastructure as well as supply chain resiliency. The U.S. needs domestic companies that represent the majority of the country's steelmaking capacity “to continue leading the fight on behalf of America's national interests,” he said.
mr biden Opposed this deal for a long time and was awaiting a report on the merger to be issued by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, known as CFIUS, to announce its final decision. The interagency committee, chaired by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, reviews such deals considering potential national security risks, and can block the sale or force changes in terms to protect national security. CFIUS said on December 23 that it was unable to reach consensus on the deal, so it was left to Mr Biden.
“As President I have a grave responsibility to ensure that, now and in the future, America has a strong domestically owned and operated steel industry that can continue to power the sources of our national strength at home and abroad; and It is a responsibility to stop foreign ownership of this vital American company,” the president said in a statement Friday announcing his decision to halt the deal. “US Steel will remain a proudly American company. American owned, American operated, American The union is the best in the world by steelworkers.”
One accompanying order The ban on the proposed takeover of US Steel, signed by Mr Biden, said there was “credible evidence” that Nippon Steel “could take actions that could jeopardize the national security of the United States.”
The president's statement said, “This action reflects my strong commitment to use all authorities available to me as President to protect American national security, including ensuring that American companies continue to operate in those areas. “Continue to play a central role that is vital to our national security.”
Mr Biden, backed by the United Steelworkers, said earlier this year that “it is important for (US Steel) to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.”
But a U.S. official familiar with the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the private report, said some federal agencies represented on the panel were skeptical of allowing a Japanese company to buy a U.S.-owned steelmaker. National security risk will arise.
us steel Sources familiar with the process said the deal indicated the president would likely file a lawsuit against the Biden administration if it blocked the acquisition. Cleveland-Cliffs, which lost its bid for US Steel, could also be named, as well as its chairman Lourenco Goncalves and Dave McCall, president of the US Steelworkers.
On Tuesday, Nippon Steel, which is headquartered in Japan, proposed giving the US government direct veto power over any changes to US steel production capacity. The proposal represents a minor change to the CFIUS recommendation that was intended to address concerns that Nippon Steel's proposed purchase of US Steel could lead to a decline in domestic steel production and a reduction in its US workforce.
Mr Biden and President-elect Donald Trump both met with unionized workers at US Steel during the presidential campaign vowed to stop the takeover Amid concerns over foreign ownership of a major US company. However, the appeal of Nippon Steel's acquisition was that it had the financial resources to invest in and upgrade the mills, which would potentially help preserve steel production within the US.
Trump also opposed the acquisition and vowed to “stop this deal from happening” in a Truth Social post earlier this month. Trump proposed reviving US steel's stellar fortunes “through a series of tax incentives and tariffs.”
The Steelworkers Union said it doubted that Nippon Steel would keep jobs at unionized plants, supplement collective bargaining benefits or protect U.S. steel production from cheap foreign imports.
In the face of political opposition, Nippon Steel and US Steel launched a public relations campaign to win over skeptics. U.S. Steel said in a statement on Monday, Dec. 23 that the deal is “the best way yet to ensure that U.S. Steel, including its employees, communities and customers, will grow well into the future.”
A growing number of conservatives publicly supported the deal, as Nippon Steel began to win over some steelworkers union members and local officials around its blast furnaces in Pennsylvania and Indiana. Many supporters said Nippon Steel has a stronger financial balance sheet than rival Cleveland-Cliffs, which could invest the cash needed to upgrade aging American Steel blast furnaces.
Nippon Steel has manufacturing operations in the US, Mexico, China and Southeast Asia. It supplies the world's top automakers, including Toyota Motor Corp., and makes steel for railways, pipes, appliances and skyscrapers.
In September, Mr. Biden issued an executive order expanding the factors that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States must consider when reviewing deals, such as how the deal affects the U.S. supply chain or whether This would put Americans' sensitive personal data at risk. risk.
jennifer jacobs And
Contributed to this report.