“CHILLING EFFECT”
The decision to block the deal enjoyed rare bipartisan agreement. Republican President-elect Donald Trump and his incoming vice president had also campaigned against the sale.
But the US Chamber of Commerce noted that investment from the country’s “important and reliable ally” Japan supports nearly one million American jobs.
“The decision also could have a chilling effect on international investment in America,” it warned.
Even without the US Steel acquisition, Nippon Steel should still be able to meet its mid-term annual production targets, said SBI Securities analyst Ryunosuke Shibata.
“Nippon Steel may have other opportunities in the future to buy a US firm” or to invest in the United States to have a production base there, Shibata told AFP.
“There won’t be a significant change in Nippon Steel’s growth strategy of investing in the United States and continuing to build up production capacity in India.”
Keizai Doyukai, one of Japan’s three major business groups, noted that protectionist trade policies were likely to heighten under the Trump administration.
“In areas related to economic security, we should strengthen cooperation with like-minded countries such as South Korea, Australia, the Philippines, and India, so as not to become completely dependent on the United States,” it said.
