Donald Trump has broadly endorsed Nippon Steel’s $15bn deal to buy US Steel, in an apparent reversal of his opposition to a cross-border transaction that was blocked by Joe Biden on national security grounds.
“This will be a planned partnership between United States Steel and Nippon Steel, which will create at least 70,000 jobs, and add $14 Billion Dollars to the US Economy,” the US president wrote in a social media post on Friday. He added that the “bulk” of that additional investment would be made in the next 14 months.
Trump’s post hailing the companies’ partnership was considered “tacit approval” by the administration for the $15bn takeover they agreed at the end of 2023, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.