Nippon deadline extended as new bid emerges

HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania — The bid by Japan's Nippon Steel to buy US Steel may have a new lease of life after the US administration extended a deadline for the Japanese steelmaker to abandon plans to acquire US Steel.

The new deadline, now in mid-June, was viewed by US Steel — and investors, apparently — as an opportunity for the companies to complete the acquisition, even though President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office in a week, also opposes the deal.

US President Joe Biden blocked the deal this month, citing a potential threat to national security, though the US Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States failed to reach a consensus on the security issue.