Joe Biden blocks Nippon Steel’s $15bn takeover of US Steel
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US President Joe Biden has blocked Japan’s Nippon Steel’s $15 billion deal to buy US steel, a setback for Washington’s relationship with its closest Asia-Pacific ally.
Bidenwho has long opposed the takeover, issued an order on Friday forcing Nippon Steel and US Steel to “completely and permanently withdraw from the proposed transaction” within 30 days.
His move comes just 17 days before he hands over the presidency to Donald Trump, who also opposes the deal.
In the order, Biden said there was “credible evidence” that through the acquisition, Nippon Steel “could take actions that threaten to harm the national security of the United States.”
The bipartisan opposition to the deal in Washington is a sign of how much the political mood has shifted against foreign investment in the US, particularly in strategic sectors where unions hold sway.
The announcement comes after the Committee on Foreign Investment failed to reach a consensus by a Dec. 23 deadline on whether the acquisition poses a national security threat.
Biden’s intervention marks the failure of an ambitious expansion plan Nippon Steel which became a sensitive political issue in a US election year.
Opposition from the United Steelworkers union proved fatal to the deal, despite intense lobbying by US Steel and Nippon Steel executives in recent weeks.
US Steel shares fell nearly 8 percent in premarket trading Friday.
Opponents of the takeover welcomed Biden’s move.
“This deal was concluded behind closed doors, without employees at the table. It was a clear threat to America’s national and economic security and our ability to enforce our trade laws. That’s why we fought it at every turn. The president is right to block it,” wrote Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.
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