The outgoing US President Joe Biden announced just a few days ago that the purchase of the steel company US Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel is being stopped. The parties were given 30 days to unwind the deal.
The American authority CFIUS is now stating that the deadline has been postponed and is giving the companies until June 18 to comply, according to a statement from US Steel.
Both Nippon Steel and US Steel have filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration for stopping the deal, a decision they claim is "purely political". Biden, in turn, has pointed out that the deal poses "a threat to national security".
Criticism has also come from Japan. The country's Industry Minister Yoji Muto believes the decision is "incomprehensible".
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is currently planning a trip to the US in February for a meeting with then-sitting President Donald Trump, where the steel deal may be brought up. Like Biden, Trump has also opposed the purchase of the American steel giant.
