Joe Biden will block the takeover by Nippon Steel

(Boursier.com) — End of suspense in sight. Without much surprise, Joe Biden decided to block the plan to buy back U.S Steel by its Japanese competitor Nippon Steela $14.9 billion operation. The Committee for Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) had put the decision on this takeover project in the hands of Joe Biden, who must leave the White House on January 20. The American president should formalize his decision during the day, according to several local media.

Joe Biden decided to veto the buyout despite the efforts of some of his advisers, who fear seeing relations between the United States and Japan suffer, underlines the ‘Washington Post’. Donald Trump also opposed this takeover of a 122-year-old company emblematic of the American steel industry.

Still, this opposition raises questions about the next steps for US Steel, which may have to restart its sales process and struggle to find a buyer for the entire company. Nippon Steel and US Steel have repeatedly indicated that they are prepared to initiate legal proceedings if the Biden administration were to block the operation.

U.S. Steel has suffered years of poor performance and warned before any decision that its facilities needed billions of dollars in new investment and that failure to close the deal could lead to some plants closing. The firm also threatened to relocate its headquarters from Pittsburgh.