The steelmakers Nippon Steel and US Steel have condemned the decision of US President Joe Biden to not allow the Japanese company to acquire the North American company. According to both companies, the procedure does not comply with the law and seeks to favor “political interests”, warning at the same time that they could file a lawsuit.
“We are dismayed by the decision,” explain the two affected companies in a joint statement, ensuring that what was determined by Biden “reflects a clear violation of due process and the law governing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). “.
Last Friday, Biden announced that he will block the agreement between the two companies for reasons of national security after the CFIUS left the final decision on the merger in his hands in December, an operation that his successor, Donald Trump, had already said he would not allow. . “Instead of following the law, the process was manipulated to advance President Biden’s political interests. “The president’s statement and order do not present any credible evidence of a national security problem, making it clear that this was a political decision,” the statement added.
“Following President Biden’s decision, we have no choice but to take all appropriate measures to protect our legal rights,” both companies indicate, suggesting that they could file a lawsuit against the US government. Nippon Steel issued a statement today in which it insists, in fact, on the same idea. “We will take all possible measures, since we will never give up expanding our operations in the United States,” he assures.
Both steelmakers consider that the refusal “means denying billions of dollars in investments committed to extending the useful life of US Steel’s aging facilities” and that it puts thousands of jobs at risk, so “President Biden has sacrificed the future of American steel workers in favor of their political interests.
A worrying decision
The text adds that it is “deeply worrying that the US Government rejects a transaction that favors competitiveness and national interests and treats an ally like Japan in this way” and that the decision “sends a chilling message to any company with headquarters in a US allied country that is considering making significant investments in that country. For his part, the Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Yoji Muto, considered in another statement that “It is incomprehensible and regrettable that this type of decision has been made for reasons of national security” and considered the acquisition plan a deal “that would benefit both countries” given the prospects that more Japanese companies would invest in the US.
The formal blocking of the operation, valued at around $14 billion, frustrates the merger of the world’s fourth largest steelmaker by production volume, Nippon Steel, with the twenty-fourth, US Steel, which was going to create a giant capable of competing with others. such as ArcelorMittal or the Chinese giants led by Baowu Steel.
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