President Biden is expected to block the sale of U.S. Steel to Japan's Nippon Steel, over concerns that selling the business to a foreign company could compromise national security. 

The proposed $15 billion deal was first announced in December 2023, leading to months of scrutiny from the White House's Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). According to The New York Times, the committee recently sent a letter to U.S. Steel detailing its national security concerns, were the sale to go through. CFIUS includes leaders from multiple cabinet agencies, and is led by treasury secretary Janet Yellen. 

President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have all said they believe the Pennsylvania-based steel company should be American-owned. The United Steelworkers union has voiced the same opinion, pointing to the possibility of a foreign owner moving jobs and production overseas. The union threw its support behind a $7.3 billion bid for U.S. Steel from an Ohio-based steel manufacturer in 2023, which U.S. Steel ultimately rejected. 

U.S. Steel has said it intends to do everything it can to ensure the sale to Nippon is pushed through, and has claimed that it would have to cut jobs and move its headquarters out of Pittsburgh if it fails to close the deal. Nippon also told the Times that it does "not believe this transaction creates any national security concerns."