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U.S. Steel shares plummet amid questions over the fate of its merger with Nippon Steel

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Pittsburgh-area union members throw support behind Harris as she opposes sale of U.S. Steel


Pittsburgh-area union members throw support behind Harris as she opposes sale of U.S. Steel

02:45

U.S. Steel shares plunged on Wednesday as Wall Street questioned whether its $14.1 billion deal with Japan’s Nippon Steel is at risk of derailing.

Shares of U.S. Steel plunged as much as 25% in afternoon trading after the Washington Post reported President Joe Biden is preparing to formally block the proposed acquisition. As of 2:35 p.m., shares of U.S. Steel were down $7.12, or 20%, to $28.48. 

At an afternoon briefing, a White House official downplayed the Washington Post report, which cited three people familiar with the president’s plans. In a statement, the White House cited a process of review by the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States, or CFIUS, a panel chaired by the Treasury Secretary. 

“CFIUS hasn’t transmitted a recommendation to the President, and that’s the next step in this process,” a White House official stated.

—This is a developing story and will be updated.



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Trump picks Andrew Ferguson to chair FTC, Ronald Johnson as U.S. ambassador to Mexico

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President-elect Donald Trump made another flurry of job announcements on Tuesday, selecting Andrew Ferguson as the next chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Ronald Johnson was nominated to be ambassador to Mexico, and Kimberly Guilfoyle to be ambassador to Greece.

Ferguson, who is already one of the FTC’s five commissioners, will replace Lina Khan, who became a lightning rod for Wall Street and Silicon Valley by blocking billions of dollars worth of corporate acquisitions and suing Amazon and Meta while alleging anticompetitive behavior.

“Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding, “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.”

Tom Barrack was chosen as the nominee for ambassador to Turkey. Barrack, a wealthy financier, met Trump in the 1980s while helping negotiate Trump’s purchase of the renowned Plaza Hotel. He was charged with using his personal access to the former president to secretly promote the interests of the United Arab Emirates, but was acquitted of all counts at a federal trial in 2022.

Trump called him a “well-respected and experienced voice of reason.”

Johnson — not the Republican senator — served as ambassador to El Salvador during Trump’s first administration. His nomination comes as the president-elect has been threatening tariffs on Mexican imports and the mass deportation of migrants who have arrived to the U.S.-Mexico border. Johnson is also a former U.S. Army veteran and was in the Central Intelligence Agency.

Ronald Johnson
Ronald Johnson, U.S. ambassador to El Salvador, listens during a joint press conference in San Salvador, El Salvador, on Aug. 27, 2020. 

Fred Ramos/Bloomberg via Getty Images


Guilfoyle is a former California prosecutor and television news personality who led the fundraising for Trump’s 2020 campaign and became engaged to Don Jr. in 2020. Trump called her “a close friend and ally” and praised her “sharp intellect make her supremely qualified.” Guilfoyle was on stage with the family on election night.

“I am so proud of Kimberly. She loves America and she always has wanted to serve the country as an Ambassador. She will be an amazing leader for America First,” Don Jr. posted.

The ambassador positions must be approved by the U.S. Senate.

Guilfoyle said in a social media post that she was “honored to accept President Trump’s nomination to serve as the next Ambassador to Greece and I look forward to earning the support of the U.S. Senate.”

Trump also announced Tuesday that he had selected Jacob Helberg as the next undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, and Dan Bishop as deputy director for budget at the Office of Budget and Management.

The replacement of Khan at the FTC likely means that the commission will operate with a lighter touch when it comes to antitrust enforcement. The new chair is expected to appoint new directors of the FTC’s antitrust and consumer protection divisions.

“These changes likely will make the FTC more favorable to business than it has been in recent years, though the extent to which is to be determined,” wrote Anthony DiResta, a consumer protection attorney at Holland & Knight, in a recent analysis.

Deals that were blocked by the Biden administration could find new life with Trump in command.

For example, the new leadership could be more open to a proposed merger between the country’s two biggest supermarket chains, Kroger and Albertsons, which forged a $24.6 billion deal to combine in 2022. Two judges halted the merger Tuesday night.

The FTC had filed a lawsuit in federal court earlier this year to block the merger, claiming the deal would eliminate competition, leading to higher prices and lower wages for workers. The two companies say a merger would help them lower prices and compete against bigger rivals like Walmart.

One of the judges said the FTC had shown it was likely to prevail in the administrative hearing.

Yet given the widespread public concern over high grocery prices, the Trump administration may not fully abandon the FTC’s efforts to block the deal, some experts have said.

And the FTC may continue to scrutinize Big Tech firms for any anticompetitive behavior. Many Republican politicians have accused firms such as Meta of censoring conservative views, and some officials in Trump’s orbit, most notably Vice President-elect JD Vance, have previously expressed support for Khan’s scrutiny of Big Tech firms.



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What declining wine sales mean for California’s wine grape industry

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What declining wine sales mean for California’s wine grape industry – CBS News


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Wine sales have been declining for years, as younger generations drink less and wine in particular becomes pricier. The shift is having a major impact on California, where 80% of U.S. wine grapes are grown. Elizabeth Cook takes a look at what the future might hold for the industry.

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12/10: The Daily Report – CBS News

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12/10: The Daily Report – CBS News


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Lindsey Reiser reports on the latest legal action in the investigation into the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO, a raging wildfire in Malibu, and what a new study tells us about the dangers of excessive heat.

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