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U.S. President-elect Trump has pledged to block Japanese company Nippon Steel’s plan to acquire U.S. Steel.
“I am completely opposed to the acquisition of the once great and powerful U.S. Steel Corporation by a foreign company, this time Japan’s Nippon Steel Corporation,” Trump said in a statement. Posted to his social media platform Truth Social Monday night EST
“As president, I will stop this deal from happening,” he said, adding that he would make U.S. Steel “strong and great again” by taking advantage of tax breaks and tariffs.
Although he has made similar statements on the 2024 campaign trail, this is the first time Trump has spoken about the deal since winning a second term as president last month.
Nippon Steel, the world’s fourth-largest steelmaker, reached an agreement in December last year to acquire U.S. Steel. However, the deal was opposed by the United Steelworkers union, a famous unionand U.S. President Joe Biden, who has vowed that U.S. Steel will remain American-owned.
The deal has been under review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which reviews transactions by foreign entities for possible national security risks.
U.S. Steel’s annual production capacity About 20 million tonsand Nippon Steel is Japan’s leading steel producer. The combined production capacity of the two companies will be as high as 86 million tons.
Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on Trump’s latest remarks.
A Nippon Steel spokesman previously said the acquisition would revitalize the U.S. Rust Belt and enhance U.S. national security “in ways that cannot be replaced by other means.”
Nippon Steel Vice Chairman Mori Takahiro told reporters in November He believes the deal can be completed before Trump takes office in January. In September, U.S. Steel Chief Executive David Burritt also expressed confidence, defending the planned sale as a deal that would strengthen national security as well as the economy and job security.
U.S. Steel’s shares have fallen more than 15% so far this year, while Nippon Steel’s shares have fallen more than 4% over the same period, according to LSEG data.
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