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U.S. Steel and the Japanese firm that had sought to acquire it are suing the Biden administration after the president announced he was blocking a proposed deal for the iconic American manufacturer.

U.S. Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel said in a release Monday that President Joe Biden ‘ignored the rule of law’ to gain favor with United Steelworkers, the union representing many of U.S. Steel’s employees, when he announced Friday he would not allow the acquisition to go through.

Separately, U.S. Steel and Nippon said they were also suing the president of the union, David McCall, as well as the head of an Ohio-based rival mining firm, Cleveland-Cliffs, accusing them of illegally coordinating to undermine the transaction.

Nippon Steel had proposed a $14 billion deal to buy U.S. Steel, but the agreement, which U.S. Steel executives favored, became mired in a national security review by a Treasury Department committee that assesses foreign ownership proposals.

Ultimately, the committee failed to agree on whether Nippon ownership posed a security risk, and it asked Biden for a final decision. In announcing his veto of the deal, Biden said shifting the firm out of American hands would undermine critical supply chains and put jobs at risk.

The Treasury committee, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Attorney General Merrick Garland are also named in the suit.  

“A committee of national security and trade experts determined this acquisition would create risk for American national security,’ a Biden administration spokesperson said in an emailed statement. ‘President Biden will never hesitate to protect the security of this nation, its infrastructure, and the resilience of its supply chains.’

McCall, the steelworkers union boss, said in a statement that he was reviewing the suit.

‘By blocking Nippon Steel’s attempt to acquire U.S. Steel, the Biden administration protected vital U.S. interests, safeguarded our national security and helped preserve a domestic steel industry that underpins our country’s critical supply chains,’ he said.

Lourenco Goncalves, the president, chairman and CEO of Cleveland-Cliffs, accused U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel of trying to ‘play the blame game.’

‘Today’s lawsuits against the U.S. Government, the USW, and Cleveland-Cliffs represent a shameless effort to scapegoat others for U.S. Steel’s and Nippon Steel’s self-inflicted disaster,’ Goncalves said in a statement.

‘Cleveland-Cliffs and the USW were not the only ones who recognized the adverse national security implications of this acquisition. This deal drew instant bi-partisan opposition, including from President Trump, who has vowed multiple times that he would block the deal,’ Goncalves added.

After the suits were announced Monday, President-elect Donald Trump, who had expressed opposition to the deal while he was campaigning last year, posted on his Truth Social platform: “Why would they want to sell U.S. Steel now when Tariffs will make it a much more profitable and valuable company. Wouldn’t it be nice to have U.S. Steel, once the greatest company in the World, lead the charge toward greatness again? It can all happen very quickly!”

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Four years after launching a push for more diversity in its ranks, McDonald’s is ending some of its diversity practices, citing a U.S. Supreme Court decision that outlawed affirmative action in college admissions.

McDonald’s is the latest big company to shift its tactics in the wake of the 2023 ruling and a conservative backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Walmart, John Deere, Harley-Davidson and others rolled back their DEI initiatives last year.

McDonald’s said Monday it will retire specific goals for achieving diversity at senior leadership levels. It also intends to end a program that encourages its suppliers to develop diversity training and increase the number of minorities in their own leadership ranks.

McDonald’s said it will also pause “external surveys.” The Chicago burger giant didn’t elaborate, but several other companies, including Lowe’s and Ford Motor Co., suspended their participation in an annual survey by the Human Rights Campaign that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees.

McDonald’s rolled out a series of diversity initiatives in 2021 after a spate of sexual harassment lawsuits filed by employees and a lawsuit alleging discrimination by a group of Black former owners of McDonald’s franchises.

“As a world-leading brand that considers inclusion one of our core values, we will accept nothing less than real, measurable progress in our efforts to lead with empathy, treat people with dignity and respect, and seek out diverse points of view to drive better decision-making,” McDonald’s Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski wrote in a LinkedIn post at the time.

But McDonald’s said Monday that the “shifting legal landscape” after the Supreme Court decision and the actions of other corporations caused it to take a hard look at its own policies.

In an open letter to employees and franchisees, McDonald’s senior leadership team said it remains committed to inclusion and believes a diverse workforce is a competitive advantage. The company said 30% of its U.S. leaders are members of underrepresented groups, up from 29% in 2021. McDonald’s previously committed to reaching 35% by the end of this year.

McDonald’s said it has achieved one of the goals it announced in 2021: gender pay equity at all levels of the company. It also said it expected to achieve a goal of having 25% of total supplier spending go to diverse-owned businesses by the end of the year.

McDonald’s said it would continue to support efforts that ensure a diverse base of employees, suppliers and franchisees, but its diversity team will now be referred to as the Global Inclusion Team. The company said it would also continue to report its demographic information.

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Former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning would consider becoming a minority owner of his old team if the Mara family is willing to sell him a stake.

“It’s definitely something of interest,” said Manning, who spoke in a CNBC Sport interview. “There’s probably only one team I’d be interested in pursuing, and it’s the one I played for for 16 years, and it’s local, and makes the most sense, but we just got to figure out if they would ever sell a little bit.”

The Mara family has owned the Giants since the team’s founding in 1925. The Giants declined to comment on Manning’s interest.

Many NFL teams have begun considering the sale of small, minority stakes after the league voted to allow private equity investment for up to 10% of each franchise in August. The process has led to several transactions thus far, both to individuals and to investment firms.

Former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady and his business partner Tom Wagner acquired a 10% stake in the Las Vegas Raiders in October. The Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles have also sold minority stakes to wealthy individuals in recent months.

Manning is already a minority owner of the National Women’s Soccer League’s NJ/NY Gotham FC. He’s also a partner at the private equity firm Brand Velocity Group.

The NFL has so far only approved select private equity firms to buy a minority stake. Brand Velocity isn’t one of them.

Manning also told CNBC Sport he agreed with the Giants’ decision to keep head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen for another season, announced Monday by the team.

The Giants ended the year 3-14 and will have the No. 3 pick in the 2025 NFL draft. The team released its starting quarterback Daniel Jones earlier this season.

“You’ve got to create some sort of continuity and keep things the same, build that culture, and that just takes time. You can’t necessarily do it in two years or three years,” Manning said. “They have some playmakers, they have some superstars on the team, and it’s just about getting everybody to buy in and to work together, and finding ways to win some of these tight games. And I think it’s the right move by keeping these guys there. Let them bring in their guys, let them create their style and create their culture.”

Manning is juggling multiple business ventures as he tries to find a new path after playing football, he said. He will serve as a Verizon FanFest ambassador next month when the telecommunications company transforms stadiums across NFL markets into a one-day party featuring live music, food and celebrity meet-and-greets with former NFL players including Jason Witten, Tiki Barber and Patrick Willis.

“I think my quest post-football is trying to find that passion and find something similar that I can work towards or am truly committed to,” said Manning. “I kind of feel like I get to start over a little bit, and I’m enjoying that learning process of figuring out what else I’m passionate about.”

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Sierra Space CEO Tom Vice has left the company, CNBC confirmed Monday.

In a statement, Sierra Space said Vice retired Dec. 31. Chairman Fatih Ozmen will serve as interim CEO, with Eren Ozmen as president.

“After three and half years in the role, Tom Vice has retired as Sierra Space CEO as of the end of 2024 — we thank him for his leadership and wish him well in his retirement,” a Sierra Space spokesperson said in a statement.

Spun out of aerospace contractor Sierra Nevada Corporation, or SNC, in 2021, Sierra is one of the most valuable private U.S. companies in the burgeoning space sector, most recently valued at more than $5 billion. But Sierra Space has struggled to launch the first mission of its reusable cargo space plane called Dream Chaser, which is key to the company establishing itself as a major player in the industry.

Vice was named CEO of Sierra Space in 2021, a few months after SNC owners Fatih and Eren Ozmen spun out the company — with investors including General Atlantic, Coatue, BlackRock and AE Industrial Partners. Vice was previously the CEO of Aerion Supersonic, a startup that planned to build high-speed business jets and that shut down in April 2021.

The first Dream Chaser vehicle was supposed to debut by 2021. But even in 2024, the space plane, named Tenacity, was not ready when United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket, its ride to space, needed to launch.

Dream Chaser has won NASA contracts to fly seven cargo missions to and from the International Space Station. Sierra Space said Tenacity is targeting a launch no earlier than May.

The company has continued to develop its inflatable space station technology, as well as expand into a product line of satellite buses after winning a high-profile $740 million Pentagon contract last year.

Sierra Space saw layoffs during Vice’s tenure, as well as turnover in a number of senior executive roles. But in 2024, Vice spoke repeatedly of Sierra Space’s plan to go public, outlining a tentative path to IPO as soon as late 2025.

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Disney will combine its Hulu+ Live TV service with Fubo, merging together two internet TV bundles, the companies announced on Monday.

Disney will become majority owner of the resulting company — the publicly traded Fubo company — with a 70% ownership stake. Fubo shareholders will own the remaining 30% of the company. The deal is expected to close in 12 to 18 months.

Both Hulu+ Live TV and Fubo are streaming services that mimic the traditional cable TV bundle, offering linear TV networks. Together the streaming services have 6.2 million subscribers.

Both services will still be available separately to consumers after the deal closes. Hulu+ Live TV can be streamed through the Hulu app, as well as part of Disney’s bundle that also includes Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+.

The deal doesn’t include the streamer Hulu, known for creating original content like “Only Murders in the Building” and “The Handmaid’s Tale,” which competes with platforms like Netflix.

“We are now stewards of an iconic brand with respect to Hulu,” said Fubo co-founder and CEO David Gandler during a Monday call with investors. He added that Hulu+ Live TV’s place embedded inside the Hulu ecosystem adds value by way of user retention.

“Having two separate platforms today, obviously, it’s not ideal,” Gandler said during the call. “We believe there are synergies on the backend…But at the moment we really want to provide consumers with choice.”

Gandler noted that while Fubo has long been focused on offering sports and news, Hulu+ Live TV is known for its entertainment offerings, too.

Fubo is expected to become immediately cash flow positive following the deal close, “instantly making Fubo the major player in the streaming space,” Gandler said on Monday’s call.

Fubo stock, which closed Friday at just $1.44 per share, surged as much as 170% in early trading Monday before paring some gains.

Notably under the deal, Fubo and Disney have settled litigation regarding Venu, the proposed sports streaming service from Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery.

Fubo had brought a lawsuit against Disney, Fox and WBD alleging the service would be anticompetitive, and last year a U.S. judge temporarily blocked the launch of Venu.

When the Disney-Fubo deal is signed, Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery will together make a $220 million cash payment to Fubo. Disney will additionally commit a $145 million term loan to Fubo in 2026. If the deal were to fall through, Fubo would receive a $130 million termination fee.

The combined company will be led by Fubo’s management team including Gandler, while its new board of directors will be majority appointed by Disney.

Bloomberg reported earlier on Monday a deal to merge the live TV streaming services was imminent.

Fubo had 1.6 million subscribers in North America prior to the combination with Hulu+ Live TV and competes with other similar bundle platforms like Google’s YouTube TV.

However, Fubo has long focused its bundle on providing sports and news content. It is one of the last to offer a variety of regional sports networks, the channels that host the majority of professional local teams’ games and often beckon high fees from distributors.

As a result, Fubo has dropped entertainment-focused channels from its bundles including AMC Networks’ channels, as well as Warner Bros. Discovery’s TV networks.

Fubo executives said Monday the breadth of the newly combined company will give it more leverage in carriage discussions with other networks.

As part of the merger, the companies also announced Monday that Fubo and Disney entered into a new carriage agreement which allows for Fubo to create a new sports and broadcasting service that features Disney’s networks. During the investor call, Fubo said it also reached a new agreement with Fox.

Fubo’s focus on sports was a primary driver behind its lawsuit against Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox’s joint venture sports streaming service, Venu.

Venu, which had been slated to launch in time for the beginning of the NFL season in September, was to be a complete offering of sports networks and content from the three media companies that had come together to create it. The app would have cost $42.99 a month, showcasing the high cost of sports in the TV bundle and helping to avoid any disturbance of carriage agreements.

The judge on the case noted that together Disney, Fox and WBD control about 54% of all U.S. sports media rights, and at least 60% of all nationally broadcast U.S. sports rights.

Fubo had alleged in its lawsuit that Venu was anticompetitive and would upend its business. When the U.S. judge temporarily blocked the launch of Venu in August, it was a big win for Fubo. The trio of media companies appealed the court ruling.

With the settlement, Venu can move forward with its launch, although no plans were announced on Monday.

Disney, meanwhile, has multiple irons in the fire when it comes to ESPN streaming options. In addition to its current app, ESPN+, and Venu, ESPN plans to launch a flagship direct-to-consumer streaming app later this year.

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Vail Resorts shares have dropped in recent weeks as a labor dispute roiled one of America’s most prominent skiing destinations.

The Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association, a union representing patrollers at the Utah mountain of the same name, went on strike late last month. The work stoppage has spurred complaints of long lines, closures and delays on social media from patrons on costly ski trips.

This situation has raised awareness of the consolidation of America’s ski resorts under Vail and a handful of other companies. Vail’s history of involvement with a notable private equity firm has also stoked the ire amid the meltdown at Park City, which is billed as the largest U.S. mountain by lift access and has a storied history that includes hosting the 2002 Winter Olympics.

Among the Park City patrol’s main asks is a raise for base wages to $23 per hour from $21, which is where the union says it has sat since 2022. The patrol said on Dec. 27 — the first day of the strike — that Vail did not offer a counterproposal to its demands related to wages or benefits.

“We did everything in our power to avoid this work stoppage,” the patrol said in a statement on its Facebook page that encouraged readers not to buy lift tickets or spend at resorts for the strike’s duration. “Our goal has been and continues to be to secure a fair contract.”

Vail, which also owns Breckenridge and dozens of other resorts, said in a weekend statement that it has increased Park City patrol wages more than 50% over the past four seasons. The average entry-level hourly patrol wage currently sits at $22.40 when factoring in skill-based pay incentives, the company said. The average patroller earns $25 per hour.

“Our wages and benefits are strong, as demonstrated by the high return rate among patrol teams across our company and by the number of applicants we get for any patrol opening,” Bill Rock, president of Vail Resorts’ Mountain Division, said in the statement. “Still, we remain committed to reaching an agreement that demonstrates the great respect we have for our patrollers.”

Vail resumed mediation with the union on Monday, according to a Park City representative. But the stock has already taken a hit as word of conditions at the resort amid the strike spread online, with shares tumbling more than 5% compared with one week ago.

“By letting a labor dispute with its ski patrolmen fester, MTN now finds itself at odds with frustrated customers who travelled to Park City over the past two weeks,” said Don Bilson, head of event-driven research at Gordon Haskett, in a Monday note to clients. “Because of a strike, the mountain is barely open and customers, not surprisingly, are venting on social media. So too are investors.”

Bilson added that the situation could turn into a “professional crisis” for CEO Kirsten Lynch.

Angry customers shared videos of lines and noting the high cost of their ski getaways on social media. Just 103 of 350 trails and 25 of 41 lifts were operating as of Monday morning, according to Park City Mountain’s live tracker.

“Longest lines ever. No excuse,” one user wrote on X.

Some of the online vitriol has centered around what’s become a pressure point among American consumers: the involvement of private equity. While Apollo dissolved its Vail stake in 2004, the role of firm in the resort operator’s history has been pointed out by those wondering why ski resorts have become so expensive.

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Many small businesses are breathing a bit easier as inflation has cooled and the race for workers slows. But consumers’ steady embrace of credit cards is taking a growing bite out of their margins.

Gene-Christian Baca, the owner of Walter’s Hot Dogs in Mamaroneck and White Plains, New York, estimated that he now pays $50,000 a year in costs associated with processing credit card transactions, a sum he says has ballooned with rising card processing rates and more customers paying with cards over cash.

“Every year, 3% of all of our sales is washed away just to credit card processing,” he said.

A Visa credit card inserted into a card reader in Tiskilwa, Ill., on Sept. 18, 2018.Daniel Acker / Bloomberg via Getty Images file

Merchants have long shouldered these “swipe fees,” the catchall term for businesses’ payments to banks and card companies each time customers swipe. While a federal rule caps debit card swipe fees at 21 cents per transaction, those for credit cards can be much higher.

And as many shoppers ditched cash for plastic cards or mobile payment apps, businesses have seen credit card transactions swell. They made up 32% of all U.S. consumer payments in 2023, up from 24% in 2019, according to a Federal Reserve study. Cash shrunk its share to 16% over the same period, down from 26%.

Spending on American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa cards in the U.S. soared to $5.25 trillion in the first half of 2024, up from around $4.98 trillion during the same period in 2023, according to data provided to NBC News by the Nilson Report, which covers the payments industry.

These shifts in customer habits have added to many businesses’ costs. Merchants paid an average of 2.26% in swipe fees for transactions using the Visa and Mastercard credit card networks in 2023, the latest year with available data, according to Nilson. The two companies accounted for more than $100 billion of the $172 billion in total U.S. swipe fees in 2023, Nilson said, and Visa accounted for 52% of credit card spending on the four major card networks.

Some of Visa’s fees are now going up. The card network raised two of the credit card swipe fees it charges banks and processing companies on Jan. 1. The move comes amid growing pushback from critics, including some lawmakers, who say swipe fees are excessive and frequently get passed on to shoppers.

“Most likely, higher swipe fees from Visa would mean higher prices for people at the store eventually,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree. “It’s unclear as to how quickly that would happen, but generally speaking, when these fees tend to go up, merchants would tend to pass those extra costs along to consumers.”

The Merchants Payments Coalition, an advocacy organization backed by leading restaurant, retail and other trade groups, estimates Visa’s additional fees will total $100 million per year.

“That seems like not a lot, but it increases the amount of every single transaction, and that really adds up over time,” said Doug Kantor, a member of the Merchants Payments Coalition’s executive committee and general counsel at the National Association of Convenience Stores.

The Merchants Payments Coalition says the $172 billion in swipe fees in 2023 set a record and estimates they cost the average family more than $1,100. The group is pushing for more transparency with credit card fees, more competition among networks and lower fees.

Visa says its changes are meant to make the network better. When confronted by policymakers about some of its swipe fees, the company has said that it “has no incentive to set [them] at levels that are too high or too low.”

A Visa spokesperson told NBC News in a statement: “We are constantly enhancing our network to better serve the businesses and consumers that increasingly choose to transact with us. Everything we do is designed to make paying and being paid with Visa more convenient, secure and reliable.”

The Electronic Payments Coalition, an advocacy group supporting card networks including Visa, says average swipe fees haven’t changed much over the last decade even as sales have increased. The organization has also noted that businesses incur distinct costs by handling cash. Those can range from operating cash registers to paying bank account fees.

Businesses handle swipe fees differently. Some, like Walter’s Hot Dogs, bake the costs into their prices. Others are trying to entice customers to use cash. Patz Deli in Manchester, New Hampshire, charges customers a 4% convenience fee for credit card transactions to cover the costs of processing fees and credit card equipment.

“It’s a cost that we don’t necessarily have to take on ourselves because it’s not our credit card,” said owner Pat Burns. “It’s your choice to use it, not ours, but we’re the ones who get charged for it.”

He said the deli introduced the convenience fee within the last couple of years as it faced mounting pressure from taxes, wages and other expenses.

“At the end of the month, by the time you bring home any type of money, 10 other people have already had their hands in it,” Burns said. “Even just a little bit like on the credit cards, 3, 4% goes a long way helping small businesses stay afloat.”

Consumer experts recommend using cash for small transactions, using rewards cards to make the most of each purchase and paying in person rather than over the phone when possible. Phone transactions often result in a higher fee for businesses due to security risks.

The fight over swipe fees has reached Congress. The Credit Card Competition Act, a bipartisan bill spearheaded by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Roger Marshall, R-Kan., aims to boost competition among credit card processing companies — something the Merchants Payments Coalition says is essential.

But the bill has stalled. Several groups supporting banks, credit card networks and credit unions are opposing the measure, saying it would harm small businesses and consumers, in part by limiting rewards.

“Swipe fees are definitely a really contentious thing and have been a battlefield between credit card issuers and networks and merchants for a long time,” said LendingTree’s Schulz. “It feels like that battle is really only going to keep going on for the next little while.”

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President Joe Biden said Friday that he has decided to block a $15 billion takeover of U.S. Steel by the Japanese company Nippon Steel, capping off a yearlong business saga that drifted into election politics.

A national security review by a Treasury Department committee failed to reach a consensus on the deal last month and deferred the final decision to the president. NBC News had reported in September that Biden was preparing to block the takeover.

The president, who leaves office in little more than two weeks, faced a challenging political calculus over the fate of the iconic Pittsburgh-based firm: Allowing a foreign entity with far greater resources to take it over could put the business on stabler financial footing, while keeping U.S. Steel in American hands risked the company’s survival under intense foreign competition. But the deal was opposed by a powerful steelworkers union.

U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works in Clairton, Pa. Quinn Glabicki for The Washington Post via Getty Images

‘As I have said many times, steel production — and the steel workers who produce it — are the backbone of our nation,’ Biden said in a statement. ‘A strong domestically owned and operated steel industry represents an essential national security priority and is critical for resilient supply chains. … Without domestic steel production and domestic steel workers, our nation is less strong and less secure.’

President-Elect Donald Trump had also voiced opposition to the takeover proposal during the 2024 presidential campaign. A Trump representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.

U.S. Steel’s stock fell more than 6% Friday.

In a joint statement, U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel condemned Biden’s decision, saying it ‘reflects a clear violation of due process and the law.’ The companies also hinted at taking legal action.

‘Instead of abiding by the law, the process was manipulated to advance President Biden’s political agenda,’ the statement said. ‘The President’s statement and Order do not present any credible evidence of a national security issue, making clear that this was a political decision. Following President Biden’s decision, we are left with no choice but to take all appropriate action to protect our legal rights.’

Later Friday, U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt released a statement ripping Biden, calling the president’s decision ‘shameful and corrupt.’

‘He insulted Japan, a vital economic and national security ally, and put American competitiveness at risk. The Chinese Communist Party leaders in Beijing are dancing in the streets. And Biden did it all while refusing to even meet with us to learn the facts,’ he wrote in the statement. ‘We intend to fight President Biden’s political corruption.’

The roughly 11,000-worker company, founded in 1901, has dwindled since its heyday, when it employed a peak of roughly 340,000 during World War II. Its share price has barely edged higher since the 1990s as cheaper steel production abroad ramped up, especially in Asia.

When reached for comment Thursday night, a spokesperson for U.S. Steel referred to a previous statement, saying that the deal ‘enhances U.S. national and economic security through investment in manufacturing and innovation,’ going on to argue that the transaction would ‘combat the competitive threat from China.’

‘It is the best way, by far, to ensure that U. S. Steel, including its employees, communities, and customers, will thrive well into the future,’ the spokesperson said. ‘It is our hope that President Biden will do the right thing and adhere to the law by approving a transaction that so clearly enhances U.S. national and economic security.’

Nippon Steel, Japan’s largest steelmaker, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

United Steelworkers, the union representing many of the company’s employees, hailed the announcement.

“We’re grateful for President Biden’s willingness to take bold action to maintain a strong domestic steel industry and for his lifelong commitment to American workers,” the union said in a statement. “Moving forward, we’re confident that with responsible management, U.S. Steel will continue to support good jobs, healthy communities and robust national and economic security well into the future.”

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro issued a separate statement calling on U.S. Steel to continue to continue to prioritize protecting jobs in the western part of the state.

“This matter is far from over,” he said. “We must find a long-term solution that protects the future of steelmaking in Western Pennsylvania and the workers who built U.S. Steel and built this country.”

The potential blocking of the deal had raised concerns that it could harm U.S. relations with Japan, a key U.S. ally and the country’s largest foreign investor.

There was no immediate comment from officials in Japan, where Friday was a bank holiday. Japanese government officials have previously declined to comment on matters concerning the management of individual companies but said it is essential for the U.S. and Japan to strengthen economic relations, “including the expansion of mutual investment.”

American and international business groups have also criticized what they say is the politicization of the deal.

The proposed acquisition drew controversy almost as soon as it was announced in December 2023, with Biden saying in a statement that month that it “appears to deserve serious scrutiny in terms of its potential impact on national security and supply chain reliability.”

Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, both campaigned against the proposed acquisition, saying U.S. Steel should remain American-owned.

Trump said in December that he would block the acquisition and revive U.S. Steel through a combination of tax incentives and tariffs.

Nippon Steel tried to assuage politicians’ concerns, saying in a statement in September that U.S. Steel would remain an American company owned by Nippon Steel North America. Nippon Steel also said that Americans would make up the majority of the board of directors of U.S. Steel, and that the American company, under its new ownership, would stay headquartered in Pittsburgh.

‘Nippon Steel will prioritize production at U. S. Steel to meet the demand in the U.S. steel market,’ Nippon Steel said.

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An online car rental service is under scrutiny after it was used in two incidents Wednesday.

The platform, Turo, is known as an “Airbnb of cars,” as it allows individual car owners to rent out their vehicles. Vehicle owners, known as “hosts,” can post cars to Turo’s website, where people can then rent them, with payments made through the platform.

Turo acknowledged it was used in both incidents in an online statement posted Wednesday.

‘It is with a heavy heart that we confirm that this morning’s horrific attack in New Orleans and this afternoon’s Tesla Cybertruck explosion in Las Vegas both involved vehicles rented on Turo,’ the company said. ‘Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.’

It said it did not believe the individuals who may have rented the autos involved in the incidents had criminal backgrounds ‘that would have identified them as a security threat,’ and that it was not aware of any information that indicates the two incidents were related. 

Turo

Turo said in a statement Thursday afternoon that the vehicles’ renters had valid driver’s licenses and clean background checks and that they were honorably discharged from the U.S. military.

‘They could have boarded any plane, checked into a hotel, or rented a car or truck from a traditional vehicle rental chain,’ Turo said. ‘We do not believe these two individuals would have been flagged by anyone — including Big Rental or law enforcement.’

Investigators had said earlier that Turo was used to rent a pickup truck that plowed through New Orleans revelers early Wednesday and procure a Tesla Cybertruck that was filled with explosives and burst into flames outside Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas.

Authorities have preliminarily said the service’s use in both incidents is a coincidence. On Thursday afternoon, authorities said there was not a definitive link between the two incidents.  

Turo, previously known as RelayRides, was created in 2009. It came of age during the broader boom in peer-to-peer startups, like Airbnb and Uber, that sought to disrupt many traditional markets including rentals of houses, automobiles and even swimming pools.

But with that disruption came concerns about security. For years, peer-to-peer platforms like Turo have faced criticisms after cars have been stolen to be used for nefarious purposes. The companies have previously responded that such incidents are exceedingly rare. However, over an approximately four-month period between October 2019 and February 2020, NBC News found some 49 reports of motor vehicle thefts in Washington, D.C., involved cars rented from Turo or its rival, Getaround, representing 6% of all incidents during the period.  

As of Sept. 30, Turo had about 150,000 active hosts worldwide, with 350,000 active vehicle listings and 3.5 million active guests participating on its marketplace, according to a company filing.

Turo’s website tells hosts that they are “safe” in trusting the platform because Turo “screen(s) each guest,” so hosts can be “confident when they hand over” their keys. 

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Accident investigators are trying to figure out what caused a Jeju Air flight to belly land without its landing gear down at Muan International Airport in South Korea, killing all but two of the 181 people on board as it burst into flames in the nation’s worst air disaster in decades.

South Korea’s acting President Choi Sang-mok ordered an emergency inspection of the country’s Boeing 737-800s, the type of plane used on the the fatal Jeju Air Flight 7C2216.

The Boeing 737-800 is one of the world’s most commonly used airplanes, and it has a strong safety record. It predates the Boeing 737 Max, the type that was involved in two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed all 346 people on board those flights. The 737 Max was grounded for almost two years.

There are nearly 4,400 of the 737-800s operated around the world, according to aviation-data firm Cirium. That means the model makes up about 17% of the world’s in-service commercial passenger jet fleet.

The average age of the world’s 737-800 fleet is 13 years old, according to Cirium, and the last of the series of planes were delivered about five years ago.

Jeju Air took delivery of the plane which was involved in this weekend’s crash in 2017. It was previously operated by European discount carrier Ryanair, according to Flightradar24. The plane involved in the crash was about 15 years old.

Aerospace experts say it’s unlikely that investigators will find a design problem with the long-flying aircraft.

“The idea that they’ll find a design flaw at this point is borderline inconceivable,” said Richard Aboulafia, managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory, an aerospace consulting firm.

A full investigation could take longer than a year, and the unusual incident has raised more questions than answers, such as why the landing gear wasn’t deployed. Even with a hydraulic malfunction, Boeing 737-800 pilots can drop the landing gear manually.

One theory involves a possible bird strike that disabled the engines.

“If that happens at the altitude they were at, they may not have had time to do emergency checklists,” said Jeff Guzzetti, a retired air safety investigator with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration. He also said if the plane hadn’t run into a hard wall at the end of the runway, the accident could have been more survivable.

The NTSB is leading the U.S. team of investigators that also includes Boeing and the FAA, since the aircraft was manufactured and certified in the United States.

Under international protocols, the country in which the accident took place will lead the overall investigation.

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