Nippon Steel's $15 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel is blocked by Biden: Report

The Washington Post said on Friday that U.S. President Joe Biden has chosen to thwart Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion buyout offer of U.S. Steel, citing two unidentified administration officials who were not authorized to discuss the situation.The Washington Post reports that Biden's choice might be made public by the White House as early as Friday.According to U.S. Steel, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States was unable to come to a consensus on whether to approve the acquisition, therefore on December 23, the matter was submitted to Biden.After receiving the CFIUS examination, Biden had 15 days to approve or deny the merger. As a result, Nippon Steel decided to move the transaction's deadline from the third or fourth quarter of 2024 to the first quarter of 2025.The acquisition raised concerns among the CFIUS that Nippon Steel might reduce U.S. Steel's manufacturing capacity, endangering American national security. According to The Washington Post, the CFIUS stated in its assessment that "potentially decreased output by U.S. Steel could result in supply shortages and delays that could affect industries critical to national security." Nippon Steel on Tuesday gave the U.S. government the power to veto any cuts to the company's steel production in an effort to allay that concern.

Nippon Steel had previously made several concessions on the deal, including maintaining U.S. Steel's Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, headquarters and appointing U.S. citizens to the board of directors. U.S. Steel shareholders supported the merger and voted in favor of its approval in April. President and CEO David B. Burritt of U.S. Steel stated, "The resounding support from our stockholders is a clear endorsement that they recognize the compelling rationale for our transaction with NSC." However, Biden, who has always openly opposed the deal, was not persuaded by those arguments. Biden declared in an official statement in March that "[U.S. Steel] must continue to be an American steel company that is owned and operated domestically." The incoming U.S. president