U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday renewed his opposition to the sale of United States Steel Corp to Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp, as he touted his tariff plans as an effective means to revive his country’s steel and other legacy industries.
Calling U.S. Steel a “very special company” that used to be the world’s No. 1 steelmaker for a long time, Trump told reporters, “That’s why we don’t want to see it go to Japan,” although the president said he loves the Asian country.
Trump claimed he saved the U.S. steel industry during his first presidency by using tariffs in response to China’s “massive” dumping.
“It’s going to thrive, maybe like never before,” said Trump, who imposed 25 percent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports in March.
Trump’s comments came two days after he ordered a panel of federal agencies to conduct another review of the Japanese steelmaker’s blocked $14.1 billion bid to take over U.S. Steel.
In a presidential memorandum released by the White House on Monday, Trump said the purpose of the review is to assist him “in determining whether further action in this matter may be appropriate,” directing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to submit a recommendation to him within 45 days.
The memorandum said the recommendation needs to describe whether plans proposed by the two steelmakers are “sufficient to mitigate any national security risks” previously identified by the committee constituted under Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden.
Trump’s order was immediately welcomed by the steelmakers, which announced their merger plan in December 2023.
But his latest comments suggested his stance on Nippon Steel’s planned acquisition of the iconic but struggling American producer remains unchanged from his position during campaigning for the 2024 presidential election.
In early January, Biden issued an order to block the sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel on national security grounds, following a recommendation by the panel, known as CFIUS.
Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel filed a lawsuit after Biden’s decision, arguing CFIUS’ screening and recommendation were influenced by the Democratic president.
Since winning the Nov. 5 election, the Republican Trump has said that Nippon Steel acquiring a minority stake in U.S. Steel would not cause any issues, but a foreign company owning it would be “psychologically not good.”
© KYODO
© Japan Today