Nippon Steel’s US setback a wake-up for Japan Inc’s foreign forays

Sensitive M&A: A file picture showing a rally by US Steel employees in support of Nippon Steel’s US$15bil acquisition early this month. Moves to block Nippon Steel will be ‘very unsettling’ and may dent trust between the United States and Japan. — AP

JAPANESE firms are set to scrutinise overseas deals more intently after US resistance to Nippon Steel’s US$15bil US Steel purchase, according to advisers.

Any US move to block Japan’s Nippon Steel would be “very unsettling”, one of the front-runners to become the next Japanese premier told Reuters, and could dent trust between the allies.