(Update 2) Biden Blocks Sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel

   Washington, Jan. 3 (Jiji Press)--U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday blocked the proposed 14-billion-dollar sale of United States Steel Corp. to Japan's Nippon Steel Corp, citing a national security risk.
   The deal "would place one of America's largest steel producers under foreign control and create risk for our national security and our critical supply chains," Biden said in a statement.
   It is unusual for the U.S. government to block an acquisition of a domestic firm by a company from an ally because of security concerns. The decision by Biden is likely to affect not only Japan-U.S. relations but also Japanese companies' operations in the United States.
   Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel will consider their responses, possibly including legal action.
   The decision by Biden comes after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, an interagency national security panel, last month referred the final decision on the deal to the president. He had said U.S. Steel needs to be domestically owned and operated.

(2025/01/03-23:27)

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