Cleveland-Cliffs CEO attacks Japan as he reiterates interest in acquiring U.S. Steel
Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves said Monday he had a plan to buy U.S. Steel as he launched a tirade against Japan, calling the close U.S. ally “evil.”
Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves said Monday he had a plan to buy U.S. Steel as he launched a tirade against Japan, calling the close U.S. ally “evil” during a news conference.
“I want to buy,” Goncalves told journalists at the Butler works plant in Pennsylvania. “I have a plan, I have an all-American solution in place. The all-American solution centers on people, on workers.”
Goncalves’ comments came after CNBC reported earlier Monday that Cleveland-Cliffs is partnering with Nucor in a potential bid for U.S. Steel. Cleveland-Cliffs is angling for U.S. Steel after President Joe Biden blocked the company’s sale to Japan’s Nippon Steel earlier this month, citing national security concerns.
Talk of a potential offer drove both U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs shares higher in trading on Monday, with shares closing up about 6% each. Nucor shares ended the day up 4%.
Goncalves launched a tirade against Japan during a news conference that ran more than 90 minutes and which was ostensibly held to mark the five-year anniversary of Cleveland-Cliffs’ acquisition of AK Steel.
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