Nippon Steel Corp.’s proposed $12.3 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel Corp. moved a step closer to being blocked after a U.S. national security panel deadlocked on its review and left the final decision with President Joe Biden, who has repeatedly indicated his opposition to the deal.

The case was referred by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to Biden’s desk Monday, which was the deadline, according to people familiar with the matter. The proponents were notified that the panel was unable to reach consensus.

The president is said to still be planning on blocking it, though the White House has never said flatly that he would. He has 15 days from the referral to announce a decision and has repeatedly said U.S. Steel should remain domestically owned and operated.

A White House spokeswoman, Saloni Sharma, said “we received the CFIUS evaluation and the president will review it,” declining further comment on Monday night.

The companies have signaled that they plan to challenge any refusal in court.

“During the 15-day period that the president has to make a final decision, we urge him to reflect on the great lengths that we have gone to address any national security concerns that have been raised and the significant commitments we have made to grow U.S. Steel, protect American jobs, and strengthen the entire American steel industry,” Nippon Steel said in a statement.

U.S. Steel, in a statement, said the deal “forges an alliance in steel to combat the competitive threat from China. This is a transaction that should be approved on its merits.”

President-elect Donald Trump has said he would block the acquisition, but the timeline means it will be resolved before he takes office.

— Bloomberg News

Starbucks strike grows over holiday

A union representing more than 10,000 Starbucks employees said a strike that began Friday had expanded to include more than 300 stores Tuesday, the planned final day of a five-day walkout.

Workers in about 10 to 15 stores across the Los Angeles, Seattle and Chicago areas kicked off the strike, which spread to a similar number of stores in three additional metropolitan areas each day. By Monday, baristas in more than 50 stores in cities including Boston, Dallas, Denver, New York and Philadelphia did not report for work.

The strike spread to additional cities Tuesday, including the Twin Cities area, union representatives said, as well as to additional stores in cities where some baristas were already on strike, potentially dampening business at one of the company’s busiest times of the year.

Closed stores are expected to reopen Wednesday, when workers have said they would return to work.

A typical company-owned Starbucks store in the United States brings in sales of about $4,000 to $8,000 during a normal business day, according to a former company official and a review of company financial filings.

The figures tend to be higher in December.

A Starbucks spokesperson said Monday he could not confirm the sales figure.

Musk’s AI venture, xAI, raises $6B

The artificial intelligence company founded by Elon Musk, xAI, said Monday that it had raised $6 billion, giving the startup a major lift as it competes with rivals, including OpenAI.

The company said on its website that it would use the money to continue building its infrastructure and accelerate research and development. BlackRock, Fidelity, Sequoia Capital and others participated in the funding round.

“A lot of compute is needed,” Musk said of the investment round in a post on X.

The fundraising could value xAI at $35 billion to $40 billion, up from $24 billion earlier this year, The New York Times previously reported.

Musk and xAI did not respond to requests for comment.

— From news services