On September 18th, according to media reports, the United States Steel acquisition case has seen a turning point. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), responsible for reviewing the transaction, has approved Japan Steel's resubmission of the merger application.

In December of last year, Japan Steel announced a $14.9 billion acquisition of United States Steel. As is customary, this transaction was subject to review by CFIUS. CFIUS is a cross-departmental government body led by the U.S. Treasury Department, primarily responsible for reviewing whether foreign investment transactions in the United States constitute a national security risk.

However, due to this year's US presidential election, the transaction has become a bargaining chip for the Democratic and Republican parties' pursuit of votes and has therefore faced unanimous opposition from both parties.

In order to salvage the transaction, Japan Steel has sent executives to the United States multiple times to lobby and has promised to make an additional $2.7 billion investment after the acquisition is completed. In addition, Japan Steel also promised that if the transaction is approved, it will establish a board of directors with a majority of American members for this company.

In addition to the public actions, Japan Steel reportedly attempted to withdraw the application submitted to CFIUS a few weeks ago and planned to resubmit the application after the US election ended. Withdrawing the application requires approval from CFIUS.

The latest news shows that CFIUS has approved Japan Steel's application. Informed sources said that CFIUS needs more time to understand the impact of this transaction on US national security and to engage with all parties involved.

United States Steel is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which is one of the key swing states that has a significant influence on the outcome of the US presidential election. In order to win the votes of workers, both candidates from the Democratic and Republican parties have explicitly expressed opposition to the United States Steel acquisition case.

The United Steelworkers Union (USW) opposes the acquisition deal by Nippon Steel. They believe that Nippon Steel has not made sufficient commitments to ensure that unionized factories can continue to operate, nor has it promised to abide by existing contractual terms.

As early as March this year, President Biden publicly voiced his opposition to Nippon Steel's acquisition of the United States Steel Corporation. There have been reports this month that Biden is ready to block this deal.

However, Biden has not taken action, possibly considering the impact of this move on the alliance between the United States and Japan.

Analysts warn that if the Biden administration rejects the acquisition of US Steel, it may make Japan hesitant to support US-led economic security initiatives, such as preventing rivals from gaining access to advanced semiconductors.