By David Lawder
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Wednesday that Nippon Steel's planned acquisition of U.S. Steel received a "thorough analysis" by an interagency review body that was sent to President Joe Biden, who blocked the deal on national security grounds.
Yellen, in a live interview on CNBC, said she could not discuss specifics of the merger review by Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) that is now the subject of a lawsuit alleging that Biden unlawfully rejected the deal.
"I think, as you know, there is ongoing litigation over this case, and as head of CFIUS, I regret there is very little substantive that I can say to you about this," Yellen said. "Other than that, CFIUS did analyze the specifics, as it always does of this situation, and prepared a thorough analysis to go to the president."
U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel alleged in a lawsuit on Monday that the CFIUS review was prejudiced by Biden's longstanding opposition to the deal, denying them of a right to a fair review. They asked a federal appeals court to overturn Biden's decision to allow them a fresh review to secure another shot at closing the $14.9 billion merger.
The U.S. Treasury secretary chairs the CFIUS panel, which screens foreign acquisitions of U.S. companies and other investment deals for national security concerns. CFIUS normally decides directly on cases or submits recommendations to the president, but in the U.S. Steel-Nippon Steel case, the panel failed to reach consensus on whether Biden should to approve or reject it, leaving the decision to him.
Both Biden and his successor, Republican Donald Trump, had both voiced opposition to the Japanese company acquiring the iconic American steelmaker as the candidates courted union votes in the November election won by Trump.
CFIUS has rarely rejected deals involving the Group of Seven closely-allied countries, which include Japan.
Yellen declined to comment about Biden's public remarks opposing the merger, adding: "We provided an analysis, as we're required, to the president and the president decided this issue."