Latest news with #NipponSteel
Chicago Tribune
10 hours ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Environmental activists explain concerns with U.S. Steel deal
About one week after a partnership between U.S. Steel and a Japanese company was finalized, environmental activists called on the companies to address the health, climate and economic impacts of the deal. 'It's our conclusion that, whether in Japan or the United States, emissions from blast furnaces cannot be significantly mitigated,' said Roger Smith, Asia lead at SteelWatch. 'The company should transition to a renewable energy-based approach that would achieve its net-zero target and fulfill its obligations as a leading global steelmaker.' Speakers at a press conference organized by the Sierra Club highlighted their concerns with blast furnaces, which Nippon Steel has previously said is a technology it plans to invest in through the deal. A more environmentally friendly alternative is a direct reduction furnace to create iron ore and then an electric arc furnace to create steel, Smith said. 'This is already in commercial use in the United States, the Middle East and beyond,' Smith said. 'Switching from fossil fuel to green hydrogen and powering the electric arc furnace with renewable energy can nearly eliminate emissions from this production method.' U.S. Steel released a statement in response to the Tuesday event, saying environmental stewardship is a core value, and they're committed to protecting its workers. 'The finalization of the partnership is just the first step in an integration process that will take time to complete,' said a U.S. Steel spokesperson in an email. 'There are still many things to be determined about how the companies will come together. We will share relevant information as this process continues.' Other participants expressed their concerns with the steel deal, including Matt Mehalik, executive director of the Breathe Project, a Pittsburgh-based coalition that fights for better air quality. Mehalik wants Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel to make it their highest priority to end severe health impacts in Pennsylvania's Mon Valley. 'Real progress will only come when public health and community revitalization are treated as non-negotiable priorities for this new deal,' Mehalik said. 'There have been too many years of promise breaking and too much emphasis on short-term investments that continue to perpetuate community health harms and workforce anxiety.' Northwest Indiana activists asked for the same priority to be given in the region. An October report from Industrious Labs found that most residents in Gary are in the top 10% of U.S. residents most at-risk for developing asthma and at-risk of low life expectancy. In 2020, Indiana had a lung cancer rate of 72.5 per 100,000 people, with Lake County as one of the state's counties with the highest cancer mortality rates, according to the American Lung Association. A 2016 JAMA Network report also found Gary as one of the top five U.S. cities with the lowest life expectancy at one point. Dorreen Carey, president of Gary Advocates for Responsible Development, participated in Tuesday's conference, saying she believes now is the time to initiate newer steelmaking technologies. 'If investments are not made now in newer technologies, the long-term survival of Gary Works and the jobs it provides are in jeopardy,' Carey said. '(GARD) and the people who live in Gary want a clean environment, the good jobs a steel mill can provide and sustainable economic development. Investing in direct reduction ironmaking will provide a cleaner, greener future for the city of Gary, and we urge Nippon to commit to these investments.' Susan Thomas, director of policy and press for Just Transition Northwest Indiana, said Tuesday night that the region is 'an epicenter of toxic air pollution.' 'Globally, this tragedy is preventable,' Thomas said. 'We say to Nippon Steel, you have an opportunity and a responsibility to become a global leader in clean steelmaking technology here and now. It is urgent that you do so, for if you prolong the lives of coal-burning blast furnaces, you will be diminishing ours.' Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel announced June 18 that they have finalized the 'historic partnership,' according to the Associated Press, making the combined company the world's fourth-largest steelmaker. On May 23, President Donald Trump announced that he would approve an investment from the Japanese company to U.S. Steel, according to Post-Tribune archives. Through the partnership, the U.S. government receives 'a golden share,' which allows de facto rights on company decisions and appointments. The 'golden share' seemingly fixes national security concerns previously outlined by former President Joe Biden and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. Before leaving office, Biden denied the deal. Both Trump and former Vice President Kamala Harris said during campaigns that they planned to block the steel deal. Through the partnership, the Northwest Indiana Gary Works facility should receive about $1 billion. Gary Mayor Eddie Melton has been vocal about his support since August 2024, when it was first announced that Gary Works would receive $300 million from the deal. In a previous statement, Melton said he will continue to meet with both steel companies about the projected job increases to Gary, improving environmental protections and future economic development. 'I am pleased thus far on how the current agreement has been structured that allows U.S. Steel to remain an American-owned and operated corporation under this new partnership,' Melton said. 'I'm equally pleased the pledges made during this negotiation will be honored, and I'm optimistic that this was the best decision for steel workers and the communities like Gary across the country.' Since it was announced that Nippon Steel would invest $300 million in Gary Works, Northwest Indiana environmental activists have been concerned. In October, GARD and Just Transition Northwest Indiana announced they supported a letter opposing the deal from the Sierra Club to U.S. Congress members. 'Nippon Steel's revealed plans to extend the life of the most polluting parts of a steel mill currently operated by U.S. Steel leaves no doubt that the company is not acting on climate or accounting for public health,' the letter said. Carey, on Tuesday, also mentioned concerns with U.S. applying for two-year presidential air exemptions from hazardous air pollutant rules for integrated iron and steel, coke and taconite iron ore process. A previous statement from U.S. Steel said the company challenged the three rules because they were not supported by science or law and would impose significant costs while setting technically unachievable standards. 'The presidential exemptions provide an additional path to achieving reasonable, effective environmental standards, which we support as part of our commitment to environmental standards, which we support as part of our commitment to environmental excellence and to being a good neighbor in the communities where we live and work,' the statement said. 'These requests do not change our continued commitment to environmental performance and safety.'
The Hill
15 hours ago
- Business
- The Hill
America's leaders confuse economic coercion for good exchange
Amid their debates over tariffs, taxes and regulations, Democrats and Republicans seem to have reached a quiet consensus that they should be more involved in economic exchange. They shouldn't. On crowded streets, in office buildings and online, people meet, words pass and goods exchange hands. But the exchanges can take one of two forms. The first is the key to just, sustainable and rapid growth. While the other leads to political dysfunction, bad investments and economic stagnation. When Democratic and Republican leaders fail to distinguish between the two — especially at the same time — it poses a grave threat to the U.S. political economy. The good type of exchange is voluntary. There is no fraud from the buyer or seller and no force from anyone else. Both can walk away with a smile and something that they value more than whatever they gave up. Governments play an important role by ensuring people have the economic freedom to pursue these exchanges. Like a neutral referee ensuring fair play, a wise government impartially safeguards everyone's right to own, use and exchange property. And it stands aside when it needs to, allowing us to make our own economic choices unencumbered by high or inequitable taxes, meddlesome regulations or steep barriers to trade. Bad exchange is coercive, even if subtly so. And subtle government coercion is all the rage these days. In one way or another, coerced exchange involves either fraud or force. An obvious example is a thug who threatens to take your money or your life. A less obvious example (involving better intentions) is the government official empowered to tell you what to do with your person or your property. The power to tax is widely accepted but fundamentally coercive. And the higher the taxes, the greater the coercion. Outlawing mutually agreed upon prices between sellers and buyers — as both President Trump and former Vice President Harris proposed at some point — is also coercive, as are Trump's tariffs, the first iteration of which were largely accepted by Biden. State governments limit entry into dozens of professions through occupational licenses that prevent upward mobility with little or no benefit to the public. When the government stipulates when, where, and how property may be used, it is coercive. Local governments assert such power over land use, helping send home prices through the roof. And in the latest example, the Trump administration flexed coercive power in its unusual arrangement with Nippon Steel. People tolerate some degree of government coercion, especially if it serves the general welfare by protecting our rights — that is, by keeping others from coercing us. But when governments stop being neutral referees and become active — if invisible — participants in our exchanges, we all pay a price. First, individuals lose agency. The great economist Adam Smith argued that coercers imagine they can 'arrange the different members of a great society with as much ease as the hand arranges the different pieces upon a chess-board' without acknowledging any other 'principle of motion besides that which the hand impresses upon them.' Think of President Biden's attempt to transfer wealth from those without college degrees to those with college degrees, despite the fact that the latter earn about 70 percent more money. Or consider Trump's attempt to transfer wealth from manufacturers that use steel to manufacturers that make it. Each is a queen's gambit that sacrifices some chess pieces for the sake of other, preferred pieces. Second, society loses talent. When policymakers spend their time transferring wealth from one group of citizens to another, some citizens spend their time trying to gain from it, while others expend effort to avoid being victims. When this happens, some of society's best and brightest waste their time, money and effort transferring wealth instead of innovating and creating new wealth. Finally, society loses essential knowledge that helps it operate. We each place our own value on certain goods and services. Only I know whether my next dollar is best spent on a doll or a dolly. The only way to make sure trade serves each of our needs is to allow us to make these tradeoffs ourselves, guided by market signals of prices, profit and loss that help us adjust our plans to those of others. The Soviet system was based on not-so-subtle coerced exchange. And as that system crumbled around them, its leaders wondered how they managed to get rockets to Venus but couldn't get working appliances in (communal) kitchens. Meanwhile, the Croatian journalist Slavenka Drakulić noted that in its 70-year existence, communism never managed to supply women with tampons. This is what happens when individuals are not allowed to make their own economic decisions. Leaders in both parties once understood this. Matthew Mitchell is a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and a senior affiliated scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.
Japan Times
a day ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Trump himself will wield U.S. Steel ‘golden share' superpowers
U.S. President Donald Trump will personally exercise a degree of control over United States Steel, now 100% owned by Japan's Nippon Steel. In a June 18 filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the American steelmaker disclosed that Trump is empowered with special "golden share" authorities while he is in office, or he can grant those rights to another person. After he leaves office, those powers will devolve to two executive branch departments — the Department of Commerce and the Department of the Treasury — giving future U.S. presidents the same degree of control over the company but indirectly exercised. The golden share allows the holder to overrule certain corporate decisions that could significantly change U.S. Steel and its business, and make certain appointments, although the full terms of the golden share have not been made public. Nippon Steel finalized the acquisition of U.S. Steel last week , following an 18-month battle that involved two national security reviews, an outright rejection by one U.S. president and a subsequent order to reverse that decision made by another president. In exchange for Trump's blessing, the companies signed a national security agreement with the U.S. government, under which a golden share is issued. 'Pursuant to the NSA, and through its ownership of the golden share, the U.S. government will have certain rights with respect to non-ordinary course matters with respect to U. S. Steel, including relating to governance, domestic production and trade matters,' the disclosures read, referring to the National Security Agency. Without the president or his designee's written consent, the following is prohibited: changing U.S. Steel's company name; moving the company headquarters from Pittsburgh or changing the company's domicile to a jurisdiction outside of the U.S.; reducing, waiving or delaying capital investment outlined in the agreement; or idling U.S. Steel plants, barring certain conditions. While certain exceptions apply, U.S. Steel is also prohibited from: acquiring U.S. businesses that compete with it or its suppliers, accepting direct financial assistance from the Japanese government, and making changes to existing raw material and steel sourcing strategies. A pricing mechanism is outlined in the SEC disclosure that prevents the company from selling its output below certain benchmarks. The golden share, which is nontransferable and does not come with dividends, grants the president the right to appoint and remove one independent U.S. Steel director, according to explanatory material published by Nippon Steel last week. Nippon Steel maintains that while the restrictions may look harsh on paper, they do not affect the parent company's ability to exercise control over U.S. Steel. 'We have secured the necessary management flexibility and profitability essential for business investment, and we recognize this agreement as fully satisfactory for our company,' Nippon Steel Chairman and CEO Eiji Hashimoto said at a news conference last week. Some Nippon Steel shareholders have expressed misgivings. At the company's annual shareholders meeting on Tuesday, four out of nine questions raised were about U.S. Steel, according to the company. A total of 1,257 shareholders attended the meeting, almost double the previous year. Shareholders voiced concerns about how the company plans to fund its pledged investment in U.S. Steel and its ability to operate free of political interference, the Nikkei reported on Tuesday. Nippon Steel shares are down 13.9% year to date and 20.0% over the past year while the Nikkei 225 has traded about flat over those time periods.
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
Trump secures unique oversight in US steel buyout
Agencies President Donald Trump will control the so-called 'golden share' that's part of the national security agreement under which he allowed Japan-based Nippon Steel to buy out iconic American steelmaker U.S. Steel, according to disclosures with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The provision gives the president the power to appoint a board member and have a say in company decisions that affect domestic steel production and competition with overseas producers. Under the provision, Trump — or someone he designates — controls that decision-making power while he is president. However, control over those powers reverts to the Treasury Department and the Commerce Department when anyone else is president, according to the filings. The White House didn't immediately respond to questions Wednesday about why Trump will directly control the decision-making and why it goes to the Treasury and Commerce departments under future presidents. Nippon Steel's nearly $15 billion buyout of Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel became final last week, making U.S. Steel a wholly owned subsidiary. Trump has sought to characterize the acquisition as a 'partnership' between the two companies after he at first vowed to block the deal — as former President Joe Biden did on his way out of the White House — before changing his mind after he became president. The national security agreement became effective June 13 and is between Nippon Steel, as well as its American subsidiary, and the federal government, represented by the departments of Commerce and Treasury, according to the disclosures. The complete national security agreement hasn't been published publicly, although aspects of it have been outlined in statements and securities filings made by the companies, U.S. Steel said Wednesday. The pursuit by Nippon Steel dragged on for a year and-a-half, weighed down by national security concerns, opposition by the United Steelworkers and presidential politics in the premier battleground state of Pennsylvania, where U.S. Steel is headquartered. The combined company will become the world's fourth-largest steelmaker in an industry dominated by Chinese companies, and bring what analysts say is Nippon Steel's top-notch technology to U.S. Steel's antiquated steelmaking processes, plus a commitment to invest $11 billion to upgrade U.S. Steel facilities. The potential that the deal could be permanently blocked forced Nippon Steel to sweeten the deal. That included upping its capital commitments in U.S. Steel facilities and adding the golden share provision, giving Trump the right to appoint an independent director and veto power on specific matters. Those matters include reductions in Nippon Steel's capital commitments in the national security agreement; changing U.S. Steel's name and headquarters; closing or idling U.S. Steel's plants; transferring production or jobs outside of the U.S..
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Nippon Steel Will Finally Get To Buy U.S. Steel. The Deal Likely Ensures More Federal Meddling in the Future.
The Trump administration is finally getting out of the way of Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel—but in a way that seems to ensure more federal meddling in the future. It has been more than 17 months since U.S. Steel, a private company, struck a deal to be bought by Japan-based Nippon Steel for about $15 billion. Before the deal could be finalized, however, then-President Joe Biden swooped in to block the transaction, citing national security concerns that were never well defined. After an extensive review by the Biden administration found no reason to block the deal, Biden unilaterally decided to derail it anyway. During last year's campaign, President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance sided with Biden (and U.S. Steel's union) and opposed the deal. But Trump has abruptly changed course. On Friday, he announced "a planned partnership" between the two companies. In a statement posted to Truth Social, the president said the deal would "create at least 70,000 jobs, and add $14 Billion Dollars to the U.S. Economy." The details of the deal remain cloudy, but it seems like Nippon will invest $14 billion to take over U.S. Steel, with a few caveats. On Sunday, Trump told reporters that the deal is "an investment and it's a partial ownership, but it'll be controlled by the U.S.A," according to the Associated Press. On Tuesday morning, Sen. Dave McCormick (R–Pa.) told CNBC that the deal ensures an American CEO will continue to run U.S. Steel (presumably as a subsidiary to Nippon Steel) and that the federal government will get a "golden share" in the company. That would "essentially require U.S. government approval of a number of the board members. And that will allow the United States to ensure that production levels aren't cut," McCormick said. If true—none of this has been disclosed officially yet—then the federal government would effectively hold a majority stake in what remains of U.S. Steel after the Nippon acquisition is completed. In short, Trump would have converted Biden's meddling in the affairs of a private company into an official, permanent place for the federal government on the board of U.S. Steel—which is, I stress once again, a private company. So-called "golden shares" originated in Britain during the 1980s, when the British government used the arrangement to retain control over companies that were privatized, including several utilities and Rolls-Royce. More recently, they have been used by the Chinese government to exert direct control over supposedly private companies. It is not surprising to see the U.S. following in China's footsteps in that regard, but it sure is disheartening. While Trump appears to have made the right decision in standing aside and allowing this deal to go through, the inclusion of a "golden share" for the federal government would be a worrying precedent that is likely to chill future investment in American companies. There was nothing objectionable about the original U.S. Steel/Nippon Steel deal. It was always ridiculous for the federal government, under Trump and Biden, to suggest that Nippon Steel, a publicly traded company based in a close American ally that already operates several steelmaking facilities in the United States, is any sort of a national security threat. Biden's decision to unilaterally block the deal was a dangerous, disgraceful expansion of executive power that relied on a willingness to stretch the definition of national security beyond any reasonable point. Trump, unsurprisingly, has used that leverage to extend the federal government's control over decisions that should be left to executives and shareholders. All of this will make it easier for Trump (or the next president) to meddle in the future of U.S. Steel, or to apply the same terms to a future foreign investment in any business a future president decides to call a national security threat. Credit Nippon's negotiators for doing what needed to be done to land a deal that's in the best interests of shareholders and workers on both sides of the Pacific. But don't cheer the bipartisan effort to expand executive power in the marketplace. The post Nippon Steel Will Finally Get To Buy U.S. Steel. The Deal Likely Ensures More Federal Meddling in the Future. appeared first on Erreur lors de la récupération des données Connectez-vous pour accéder à votre portefeuille Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données
