Podcast: What next for blocked Nippon-US Steel merger?

The latest episode from MEPS International’s Speaking of Steel podcast series explores the latest developments in Nippon Steel’s USD15 billion bid to acquire US Steel.

MEPS’s US steel market analyst Laura Hodges joined managing editor Tom Sharpe to discuss President Joe Biden’s recent blocking of the deal and the fallout that followed. The President’s ruling, on national security grounds, followed his consideration of the findings from a Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) investigation into the takeover. 

In the days that have followed, however, Nippon and US Steel have filed joint legal proceedings against the US Government in an attempt to keep the deal alive, as previously reported by MEPS. 

Speaking in the new podcast, Hodges said that there were two clear conclusions from these recent developments. “One, Nippon Steel is not walking away from this deal”, she said. “Two, this ongoing deal, or this potential deal, is not going away in the next 30 days.” 

The ‘What next for blocked Nippon-US Steel merger?’ episode from the Speaking of Steel podcast series is now available via YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts. In it, Hodges and Sharpe consider: 

• The Nippon-US Steel story so far; from political debate to legal arguments Nippon and US Steel’s continued confidence of securing a deal
• The future for US Steel and its workers
• US steel market outlook: the current climate and the outlook for 2025 

Regular insight from the United States steel market appears in MEPS’s International Steel Review. The monthly publication also includes market commentaries, prices, price indices and six-month price forecasts for the US as well as China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and seven European steelmaking states. 

Contact MEPS directly for more details of how to subscribe.