Exclusives | Asia

US opposition to Nippon Steel deal ‘very unsettling’, Japan PM hopeful says

6 September 2024, 12:00 am
1 min read
Nippon Steel's Kashima factory is pictured in Kashima, Ibaraki prefecture, Japan April 10, 2017. REUTERS/Yuka Obayashi

Reuters exclusively reported that one of the frontrunners to become Japan’s next premier said that any U.S. move to block Japan’s Nippon Steel from buying U.S. Steel on national security grounds would be “very unsettling.” Shigeru Ishiba, a former defence minister, told Reuters in an interview that the move could dent trust between the allies. The White House is close to announcing that President Joe Biden will block the $15 billion deal, Reuters reported this week.