The European Union on Monday approved the $14 billion takeover of major American manufacturer US Steel by Japan’s Nippon Steel, which US President Joe Biden has opposed.
The European Commission “concluded that the notified transaction would not raise competition concerns”, the EU’s powerful antitrust regulator said in a statement.
The acquisition plan, announced by Nippon Steel in December 2023, has become a controversial issue ahead of the US presidential election in November.
Biden earlier this year opposed the deal because he said it was vital for US Steel “to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated”.
The company is based in Pittsburgh, in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, which Biden won in the 2020 election.
