The global steel industry is about to usher in a large-scale merger of 100 billion yuan, which involves the sale of American steel companies to the Japanese company New Nippon Steel Co., Ltd. The total value of the deal reached $14.1 billion, and the actual value could reach $106.3 billion, taking into account factors such as debt. The news sparked strong dissatisfaction and opposition from the U.S. Steel Union. The union expressed opposition to selling the company to a Japanese company and preferring to hand it over to a U.S. company. They asked U.S. regulators to review the deal and stop the takeover from happening. The Biden team has said it will review the case, similar to the position of the steel unions, who believe that U.S. steel companies are vital to the domestic steel industry, and that acquisitions by Japanese companies may have "security" implications. The stance of the union and the Biden team shows that they are skeptical of the takeover, suspicious of the motives of Japanese companies and worried about the impact on the U.S. steel industry and ***.
The U.S. Steel Union was not satisfied with the decision to sell U.S. Steel to Japanese companies. They believe this will lead to the core of the domestic steel industry, namely U.S. Steel Corporation, falling into the hands of foreign companies. In an atmosphere where the United States has always advocated local manufacturing, this is clearly contrary to the original intention of the United States. In addition, the U.S. is aggressively deploying in the field of electric vehicles, and if Japanese companies succeed in acquiring U.S. Steel, they will have access to the special steel needed to make electric vehicles, which will have an impact on the U.S. electric vehicle industry. Steelworkers fear it will undermine America's industrial strengths, deprive them of a voice in the domestic steel industry, and have expressed concerns about national and industry security.
So, are Japanese companies really "uneasy and kind"?This may just be the rhetoric of the American Steel Union and the Biden team. In response to this merger, they can only hope to prevent the transaction from the perspective of a Japanese company. It is worth noting that the Japanese company is already one of the world's largest steel manufacturers, and if the merger is successful, it will further monopolize the steel market. From the U.S. perspective, they want to retain local manufacturing capacity in the steel industry, rather than handing over this important industry to allied companies. In addition, given the advantages of Japanese companies in the field of specialty steels, they put competitive pressure on the U.S. electric vehicle industry. Therefore, from an economic and security point of view, the acquisition behavior of Japanese companies has raised a series of concerns and questions.
The tough stance of the U.S. Steel Union and the scrutiny of the Biden team suggest that the takeover is very likely to be blocked or slowed down. After all, ** wants to make overtures to the union at a critical moment, and the approval of the takeover will not be given lightly. Even if the final deal materializes, it is likely to be limited and delayed to meet the concerns of the union and **. At present, the United States and Japan have always shown themselves as "friendly and co-construction of the first chain", but the emergence of this merger and acquisition case has caused a rift in the relationship between the two countries. **Risk and other factors make it difficult to close this transaction. Perhaps, ** will adopt a slowdown strategy while maintaining alliances. In any case, the determination of the American Steel Union to assert its voice will have a significant impact on the entire transaction.
This large-scale merger and acquisition of U.S. Steel has aroused widespread attention and controversy. The opposing stance of the trade unions and ** shows that they are skeptical of the motives of Japanese companies and their impact on national interests. In the current political and economic environment, domestic industrial protection and local manufacturing have become important issues. However, from the perspective of Japanese companies, they want to further expand their market share and enhance their competitive advantage through acquisitions. The different positions of the two sides have created different views and disputes. For me personally, after in-depth understanding and reflection, I believe that prudent decision-making should be made in the long-term interests of the country and the industry. M&A can bring more efficient resource allocation and industrial upgrading to the global market, but attention should also be paid to protecting local industries and ensuring that this requires not only the supervision and management of the world, but also the self-discipline and cooperation of industries and enterprises. It is hoped that all parties can reach a consensus on this merger and acquisition and find a balanced and win-win approach.