The Nippon Steel and US Steel groups announced this Sunday, January 12, that they had obtained a reprieve from Washington until June to formally abandon their plan to buy the American steelmaker by its Japanese competitor. In a joint statement, the two groups, whose rapprochement was prohibited by the administration of US President Joe Biden, indicated that the deadline for abandoning “total and definitive” the project had been postponed from February 2 to June 18. Nippon Steel and US Steel said “satisfied” of this reprieve and stressed that they continue to want “to complete the transaction, which offers the best guarantees for the future for the American steel industry and for all shareholders”.
A few days before his departure from the White House, Joe Biden blocked this sale worth $14.9 billion on January 3, citing reasons of “national security”. Nippon Steel and US Steel filed a legal challenge against the decision, finding it “illegal”.
This veto has cast a chill in relations between the Japanese and American allies, with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba calling on Washington to “explain clearly” which justifies it. On Sunday, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya stressed the importance of “manage this file” so as not to undermine “the alliance between Japan and the United States”. US President-elect Donald Trump has announced his hostility to this acquisition, which was initially announced in December 2023.
