International Steel Mills

Nippon requests Japan's government restrict steel imports from China

August 30, 2024

Nippon Steel and other Japanese steelmakers are lobbying their government to limit imports of Chinese steel, according to a report in Reuters.

“We are lobbying the government to consider measures including anti-dumping duties,” Nippon Steel Vice Chairman Takahiro Mori was quoted as saying.

Additionally, he noted that he had secured the support of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (also currently the Democratic vice-presidential nominee) for the Nippon/U.S. Steel merger when Mori visited the US in June.

The article noted that Walz has not commented on the deal since then.

Recall that USS has extensive iron ore operations in Minnesota.

A request for comment from Nippon Steel was not returned by the time of publication.

Background

The deal for U.S. Steel, first proposed in December and valued at over $14 billion, still faces US government regulatory hurdles. It also faces resistance from various politicians and the United Steelworkers union.

Nippon has recently sweetened the deal in a bid to court the union with significant capex promises, amounting to over $1 billion at various USS operations.

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA. in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.