Raytheon awarded $71 million in Navy contracts for missile systems
Investing.com -- S&P Global downgraded Nippon Steel’s credit rating to ’BBB’ from ’BBB+’ on Thursday, citing financial strain following the Japanese company’s purchase of U.S. Steel.
The rating agency also assigned a ’negative’ outlook to the steelmaker, expressing concerns that Nippon Steel’s financial position will remain weak over the next one to two years due to debt-raising efforts and planned large-scale investments in U.S. Steel assets.
"We believe that the negative effects of the increased financial burden will far outweigh the positive effects of the company’s expansion and strengthened geographic diversification of its earnings base in the growing North American market," S&P said.
Nippon Steel completed its $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel in June after an 18-month process to secure U.S. government approval. The deal faced scrutiny over national security concerns.
To partially fund the acquisition, Nippon Steel plans to raise 800 billion yen ($5.4 billion) through two subordinated loans, which will also help refinance previous loans.
The acquisition includes plans for $14 billion in new investments, with $4 billion allocated for a new steel mill.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.