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July 12, 2025
 

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Alexandra Alper
The Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. on Wednesday submitted a recommendation to President Donald Trump on Nippon Steel's fraught $14.9 billion bid for U.S. Steel, a person familiar with the matter said, without providing further detail on its contents.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 23, 2025
U.S. panel submits view on Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal to Trump
Trump will now have 15 days to decide the fate of the transaction, although the timeline could slip.
People gather to protest outside the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) headquarters after the Elon Musk-led "department of government efficiency" (DOGE) was charged with oversight of OPM, in Washington on Feb. 2.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 28, 2025
100 days of DOGE: lots of chaos, not so much efficiency
"DOGE is not a serious exercise," said Jessica Riedl, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a fiscally conservative think tank that supports streamlining government.
Elon Musk confirmed plans on Tuesday to reduce his government time commitment to one or two days a week to focus on his battered car company Tesla.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 24, 2025
Trump's Cabinet ready to take back power with Musk stepping back, sources say
Elon Musk plans to reduce his government time commitment to one or two days a week to focus on his battered car company, Tesla.
The U.S. Department of Education in Washington on March 6
WORLD / Politics
Mar 12, 2025
U.S. Education Department to cut half its staff ahead of planned elimination
The department oversees $1.6 trillion in college loans, enforces civil rights laws in schools and provides federal funding for needy districts.
Elon Musk shows off his t-shirt reading "Tech Support" while speaking at the first cabinet meeting hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump, at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 27, 2025
Trump orders more layoffs as Musk touts cuts at cabinet meeting
The U.S. president let downsizing czar Elon Musk take a star role at his first cabinet meeting and discuss his ambitious budget-cutting targets.
Elon Musk holds up a chainsaw onstage during the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, on Feb. 20.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 26, 2025
Musk's new ultimatum spurs fresh confusion among U.S. government workers
President Donald Trump said workers who did not respond would be "sort of semi-fired," adding to the uncertainty.
A drone view shows Gary Works, the largest integrated steel mill in the U.S., which is operated by U.S. Steel, in Gary, Indiana, on Dec. 12.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 6, 2025
Rival CEO allegedly spread doubt about Nippon Steel deal to Wall Street
The private remarks the CEO made throughout 2024 about the deal process show the extent of his effort to cast doubt.
Nippon Steel's $15 billion bid for U.S. Steel has been referred to U.S. President Joe Biden after a U.S. panel on foreign investments was unable to reach a consensus.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 24, 2024
Nippon Steel's bid for U.S. Steel referred to Biden for final decision
Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States referred the bid to the U.S. president after failing to reach a consensus.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the economy at the Brookings Institution in Washington on Dec. 10.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 21, 2024
Nippon Steel alleges undue White House influence on doomed deal review
The accusation was made in a Dec. 17 letter, signed by counsel for Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel, to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
The U.S. Steel Mon Valley Works Edgar Thomson Plant along the Monongahela River in Braddock, Pennsylvania
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 19, 2024
Despite revamped proposals, Nippon Steel deal on track to be blocked, letter shows
The letter, sent Saturday, sets the stage for U.S. President Joe Biden, who has long opposed the deal, to block it.
U.S. President Joe Biden — born in U.S. Steel’s home state of Pennsylvania — has long signaled opposition to the company's sale to Nippon Steel.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2024
U.S. says review of Nippon Steel bid ongoing as U.S. Steel shares tumble
The companies are poised to pursue litigation over the process if U.S. President Joe Biden decides to block the merger, sources added.
Howard Lutnick, Chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, gestures as he speaks during a rally for then-Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden in New York on Oct. 27.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 21, 2024
Lutnick's China ties draw fire after Trump taps him for U.S. trade roles
The ties raise questions about whether Lutnick could be unduly influenced by Beijing when making decisions as U.S. trade representative and commerce secretary.
A United Steelworkers sign is seen outside the Great Lakes Works U.S. Steel plant in River Rouge, Michigan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 18, 2024
U.S. decision on Nippon Steel bid pushed back until after election
The move offers a ray of hope for the companies, whose proposed deal appeared set to be blocked on national security grounds.
Nippon Steel has responded to the U.S. government concerns by saying it will invest billions of dollars to maintain and boost U.S. Steel facilities that otherwise would have been idled, "indisputably" allowing it to "maintain and potentially increase domestic steelmaking capacity in the United States."
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 6, 2024
U.S. fears Nippon Steel's bid for U.S. Steel could hit vital steel supply
The U.S. government is concerned that U.S. Steel would be less likely to seek tariffs on foreign steel importers if it is under the ownership of the Japanese steelmaker.
U.S. Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, a U.S. House representative from Texas
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 12, 2024
U.S. lawmakers raise concerns over Microsoft deal with Emirati AI firm
The Republican lawmakers' letter is a sign of growing concern about the lack of regulations around the export of sensitive artificial intelligence models.
The investigation into the Chinese telcos is the latest effort by Washington to prevent Beijing from exploiting Chinese firms' access to U.S. data to harm U.S. companies, Americans or its national security as part of a deepening tech war between the geopolitical rivals.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 25, 2024
U.S. probing Chinese telcos over internet and cloud risks
Their cloud services and routing of wholesale U.S. internet traffic raise concerns that they could exploit access to American data by providing it to Beijing.
China is likely around two years behind the United States in developing its own AI software.
WORLD / Politics
May 9, 2024
U.S. eyes curbs on China's access to AI software behind apps like ChatGPT
Preliminary plans the Biden administration has include placing guardrails around the most advanced AI Models, the core software of AI systems like ChatGPT.
A Chinese flag is flown near a Huawei store in Shanghai in 2023.
WORLD / Politics
May 8, 2024
U.S. revokes some export licenses for firms supplying China's Huawei
Huawei was placed on a U.S. trade restriction list in 2019 amid fears it could spy on Americans.
Assembly engineers work on a lithography system at ASML in Veldhoven, Netherlands in June.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 5, 2024
Targeting Chinese chips, U.S. to push Dutch on ASML service contracts
The U.S.' export policy chief is set to meet in the Netherlands next Monday with officials from the Dutch government and ASML.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 29, 2024
Biden cracks down on U.S. data flows to China and Russia
Seeking to protect American personal data, Biden unveiled an executive order barring genomic data transfers to China and other "countries of concern."
Tokyo hit by torrential rainfall at rush hour
People line up at Shibuya Station in Tokyo as they try to avoid the heavy rain on Thursday.
Foreign drivers in Japan to face tougher license conversion rules from October
According to the National Police Agency, there were 75,905 people who converted their foreign driver’s license to a Japanese one in 2024, up from 48,885 in 2019.
Chinese fighters came within 30 meters of Japanese spy aircraft, Tokyo says
A Chinese JH-7 fighter jet makes an near an Air Self-Defense Force YS-11EB surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea this week in this image released Thursday.
Air India crash report to offer peek into last seconds
Members of the Indian Army's engineering arm prepare to remove the wreckage of an Air India aircraft in Ahmedabad on June 14.
What Japanese politics could look like after Upper House election
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (center) waves to attendees as he departs after delivering a campaign speech in Yokohama on Sunday.
New IG Arena set to dial down temperature at Nagoya Basho, in a good way
With IG Arena getting glowing early reviews as the Nagoya Basho’s replacement venue, it may be a while before fans wax nostalgic about the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.
Once a niche, anime is now mainstream content for Netflix and other streaming services
Though Netflix remains the dominant choice globally for anime viewers, Amazon Prime Video has also invested heavily in anime, steadily adding titles to their catalogue.
NGOs condemn rise in anti-immigrant rhetoric ahead of Upper House vote
Sanseito head Sohei Kamiya holds a board that reads "Japanese First" in Tokyo on July 2. In a joint statement on Tuesday, eight human rights nongovernmental organizations described the far-right party's stance as "hate speech."
Japanese dancers find a home abroad at Houston Ballet
“Giselle” lead Yuriko Kajiya (center), performing with Connor Walsh as Albrecht, is one of six Japanese dancers at Houston Ballet.
From the Abes to the Ohtanis: How siblings shape athletic development
Olympic judoka Uta Abe (second from left) and Hifumi Abe (second from right) with their brother Yuichiro (center) and their parents. “I’m always consciously trying to be a good older brother,” Yuichiro said.

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