Japan’s biggest business lobby, Keidanren, warned that blocking the acquisition would tarnish America’s investability, but top Japanese officials repeatedly stressed that economic ties between the allies will not be hindered. Despite President Biden rejecting Nippon Steel’s $15 billion bid for U.S. Steel, other Japanese companies are lining up fresh investments in the US.
Japanese businesses have shifted their focus towards the US and China in recent years due to a harder time investing in China. The volume of Japanese-led deals in the US has stalled slightly last year, but trade experts expect investments to pick up again when President-elect Trump takes office. The risk of increased tariffs gives foreign companies a greater incentive to invest in the US over other countries.
Japanese power companies are eyeing potential investments in natural gas and energy projects promoted by Mr. Trump. SoftBank’s CEO Masayoshi Son pledged to invest $100 billion in the US over four years. Experts say business leaders will not be deterred from investing in the US due to a single case like Nippon Steel.
A recent rejection of Nippon Steel’s bid has sparked concerns about the perils of American politics, but it is unlikely to stop other Japanese companies from seeking deals in the US. China has been trying to bolster relations with Japan as part of its efforts to counter a potential trade war between the US and China that is expected to worsen when Mr. Trump takes office.
Despite the setback, Japan’s top business publication, Nikkei, said Nippon Steel’s crushed bid was due to a mistaken calculation that economic rationality would prevail even in an election year. Experts view the rejection as a “one-off” and say Japan will continue to hedge its bets by investing in the US.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/04/business/us-steel-nippon-japan-takeover.html