President Trump says U.S. Steel and the Japanese firm Nippon Steel will enter a “planned partnership” that will keep the iconic American company based in Pennsylvania.
Mr. Trump, writing Friday on Truth Social, said he planned to celebrate the merger at a rally on May 30 at the company headquarters in Pittsburgh.
“For many years, the name, ’United States Steel’ was synonymous with Greatness, and now, it will be again,” he wrote.
The announcement resolved negotiations that had unfolded for months.
Former President Joe Biden had rejected Nippon Steel’s $15 billion bid to acquire U.S. Steel. He said the steel industry must remain in U.S. hands for national security reasons.
Mr. Trump also felt that U.S. Steel should remain in American hands, a nod to blue-collar workers and voters in Pennsylvania and other states.
Yet it was unclear whether the iconic company, founded in 1901, would be able to regain its past glory. Its financial fortunes and workforce have dwindled.
Nippon Steel, the fourth-largest steelmaker in the world, said the deal was critical to its company’s growth and would be a win for workers in the Rust Belt.
Tensions around the negotiations also created friction with Japan, a key ally in the Indo-Pacific region.
Mr. Trump on Friday highlighted potential benefits for U.S. workers from the merger, saying the bulk of investment would occur in the next 14 months and generate $14 billion for the U.S. economy.
He also said his 25% tariff on steel would prevent foreign nations from undercutting the domestic industry with a flood of cheap metals.
“My Tariff Policies will ensure that Steel will once again be, forever, MADE IN AMERICA. From Pennsylvania to Arkansas, and from Minnesota to Indiana, AMERICAN MADE is BACK,” Mr. Trump wrote.
