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Investing.com -- In a last-ditch effort to save their $15 billion merger, executives from US Steel and Nippon Steel are seeking meetings with high-ranking officials from the Trump administration, according to a report from Semafor. David Burritt, the CEO of US Steel, has been in communication with staffers about a potential meeting with Vice President JD Vance. Similarly, Nippon Steel is attempting to schedule a meeting between their top executive, Takahiro Mori, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to individuals familiar with these communications.
Despite not securing an official meeting yet, both US Steel and Nippon Steel remain committed to their merger, a deal which both Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump have promised to block.
Presidential vetoes of foreign takeovers on national security grounds are rare, especially when the proposed sale involves an ally and the company in question doesn’t hold critical military contracts. However, this deal has become a focal point for complex political issues surrounding union labor, China, and defense readiness.
Following his election, President Biden blocked the deal on national security grounds, fulfilling a campaign promise seen as an effort to gain union support. President Trump, who prioritized the revival of American manufacturing, also pledged to block the deal but has not issued any further executive orders. At a joint press conference with Japan’s prime minister on February 7, Trump stated that Nippon would invest in the Pittsburgh-based company rather than buy it outright.
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