Trump orders review of Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. steel

On April 7, 2025, local time, US President Trump instructed a US national security team to review Nippon Steel’s acquisition of US Steel to help determine whether further action is appropriate.

Previously, on December 18, 2024, US Steel agreed to be acquired by Nippon Steel for $14.1 billion. The acquisition was strongly opposed by American unions and politicians. On January 3, 2025, then-US President Biden signed an executive order to prevent Nippon Steel from acquiring US Steel on the grounds of national security. Subsequently, the two companies filed a lawsuit, requesting the court to revoke Biden’s order to block the acquisition and review the acquisition. On February 7, Trump held talks with visiting Shigeru Ishiba. After the meeting, Trump said that Nippon Steel had abandoned its plan to acquire US Steel. On February 9, Japan confirmed that Nippon Steel would abandon the acquisition and invest in US Steel. But now Trump has ordered a review of the incident.

According to analysis, the reasons why the US opposes the acquisition include the impact on the US job market and supply chain, and the potential impact on Biden’s previous political commitments. However, Nippon Steel has said that the acquisition will help the US steel industry grow and strengthen the US industry and supply chain. The subsequent development of this event remains to be further observed.