The House voted Jan. 3 to renew the House Select Committee on China as part of an adoption of rules for the new 119th Congress.
President Joe Biden’s decision to block the proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan-based Nippon Steel (see 2501030009) “creates troubling risks to the United States’ global economic standing that could only worsen in the years to come,” Sarah Bauerle Danzman, a resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council, wrote in a blog post for the think tank last week.
Japan-based Nippon Steel Corp. and U.S. Steel Corp. asked a federal court Jan. 6 to set aside the Biden administration’s “illegal and improper” decision to block Nippon Steel’s acquisition of the American firm. Their lawsuit also urges the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to order the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to conduct a new review of the proposed $14.9 billion transaction.
Almost 10 months after announcing he would oppose the proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel Corp. by Japan-based Nippon Steel Corp. (see 2403140049), President Joe Biden issued a formal order Jan. 3 blocking the deal, saying he continues to believe the 124-year-old American steelmaker should remain in domestic hands. Nippon Steel criticized the decision and hinted it will challenge it in court.
Incoming House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill, R-Ark., said Jan. 3 that he plans to consult with the incoming Trump administration before possibly taking action on legislation to restrict U.S. outbound investment in China.
Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., incoming chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, announced Jan. 2 that Ben Johnson will be the panel’s new staff director. Johnson most recently was staff director for the House Small Business Committee. Also at House Financial Services, Kim Betz will be deputy staff director and general counsel, and Allison Behuniak will be policy director. The committee has played a major role in attempts to pass legislation to restrict U.S. outbound investment in China.
Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., is joining the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this month for the new 119th Congress, incoming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announced Jan. 2.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control was one of multiple Treasury Department offices recently breached by Chinese government hackers, the Washington Post reported this week. Treasury reportedly disclosed the hack in a Dec. 30 letter to lawmakers, saying that it was still assessing the impact. The agency added that the documents accessed were unclassified and there was no evidence the hacker still has access to Treasury systems.
The Bureau of Industry and Security’s record-setting enforcement pace over the last several years has raised the agency’s profile and convinced more businesses to invest in compliance, said Matthew Axelrod, the top BIS export enforcement official. But Axelrod said he thinks companies can do more.
A group of Senate Republicans criticized the State Department’s decision this month to renew the U.S.-China Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement for another five years, saying it gives “cover” to universities, businesses and others to continue research cooperation with entities tied to the Chinese government.