President Trump on Monday ordered a new review of the bid by Japan’s Nippon Steel to buy U.S. Steel.
Trump ordered the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, to look at the deal again. The interagency committee failed to reach a consensus last year and left the decision up to former President Biden, who ultimately blocked the merger, saying he wanted to protect the nation’s security and infrastructure, as well as supply chain resiliency.
CFIUS reviews transactions involving foreign investment in the United States to see how they would impact the nation’s security. According to the memorandum, Mr. Trump wants a recommendation from CFIUS in 45 days.
“CFIUS shall submit a recommendation to me describing whether any measures proposed by the parties are sufficient to mitigate any national security risks identified by CFIUS,” the memo reads.
During the presidential campaign, both Mr. Trump and Biden vowed to block the deal. But the president said in February that Nippon Steel would drop its bid to acquire U.S. Steel and instead “invest heavily” in the company without taking a majority stake.
The proposed merger has been met with opposition from the United Steelworkers union from the start, despite support from the rank-and-file steelworkers. Community leaders have said the future of steelmaking in the Mon Valley is at stake, knowing U.S Steel has warned that if the deal doesn’t go through, it could begin transferring operations down south and move its headquarters out of Downtown Pittsburgh.
