On wednesday following a report the White House is preparing to formally block Nippon Steels 14 Billion takeover bid. People familiar with the matter say a decision could be made as soon as this week. The move would be highly controversial and critics say it would lead to Job Losses and could chill foreign investment in the us. For more, heres our North America Business correspondent Ritika Gupta in new york. Nippon steels 14 Billion bid to acquire united States Steel has been caught in the crosshairs of an election year, and in the crucial Swing State of pennsylvania, where us steel is based. Us president Joe Biden has long pledged that the iconic american company, headquartered in pittsburgh, should remain domestically owned and run. Presidential nominees Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have also both Committed to keep us steel american, though any move to block the deal could potentially be subject to litigation. Proponents of Nippon Steels bid say the us shouldnt reject a bid from a
The International Energy agency has revealed that lng now makes up 35 of europes energy supplies, not far off the 40 contribution that russia made before it was sanctioned over ukraine. Joining me now is ben mcwilliams, whos an Affiliate Fellow at bruegel. Thank you very much for being with us today. What are your concerns about where gas prices could go if these workers do indeed strike . This is certainly a concern, but to be clear up front, nothing comparable to last year. The position we are in is that, as you mentioned, as russian Pipeline Supplies have been cut over the last 12 months, the eu and uk have become more dependent on liquefied national gas. Natural gas. Australia typically supplies asia. If it were cut to asian consumers, we would see asian consumers turning around and looking to qatar and competing with european buyers there, which would in turn have some Knock On Effect on prices. As it had last week, 40 increase from around 30 to 36 euros just nothing like close to
We start with the social media app tiktok because its ceo has vowed to keep on fighting after the us House Of Representatives passed a bill that could see the app banned in america. Shou zi chew released a video on tiktok threatening legal action and warning that if the bill becomes law it will mean the end of tiktok for its 170 million users in the us. Well hearfrom him injust a moment, but first, heres our us Business Correspondent erin delmore who has been following developments on capitol hill. The houseboat sets the stage for what could become an ultimatum to tiktok Chinese Owned Company bytedance. Selby avenue or it will be banned. There is a way to go between here and there. It needs to go through this and it faces an uncertain future. The Senate Majority leader has been noncommittal about whether he will bring it up for a vote. Some studies are only about to vote against it. If it does move through the senate, President Biden that he will sign it. Components of the bill argue t
Favour over the past month. Weve seen sterling rise that will help temper the Price Pressures from imports. Weve also seen other pressures in the markets where theyve been raising some questions about the Bank Of Englands credibility, as in Mortgage Rates going up without decisions being made that has all calmed down, too. And the public s expectations of where inflation is going, which were really very high, have now begun to temper. So thats also going in the banks favour. But a crucial issue is that they have raised rates by 5 the impact of that has really taken some time to filter through into the economy, there is sort of turning the type of rate rises on. Turning the tap. We are beginning to see the impact of that now weve seen in the Housing Market, weve seen it in some corporate insolvencies too. So that all leads back to this Balancing Act between crushing inflation, but avoiding a downturn its a tight rope and we are probably approaching the most narrow, trickiest part of tha
So what is driving this revival in bitcoin . Erin delmore reports. Its been more than two years since we have seen Bitcoin Cross the 60,000 mark, but the cryptocurrency did just that on wednesday, even soaring to 64,000. It may be closing in on its all time high of 68,000. There are a few reasons why crypto enthusiasts are fired up About Bitcoin these days, newly approved Spot Bitcoin Exchange traded funds have investors buzzing and there is a change coming up in april when bitcoin miners start getting less bitcoin for their efforts and the spectre of lesser supply fuels more demand. 0ne lesser supply fuels more demand. One more thing than any background here, the Federal Reserve is expected to cut Interest Rates this year, that stokes investors because interest in alternative investments like cryptocurrencies. But its not all smooth sailing, some uses of queen based global, the largest trip to exchange in the us unexpectedly saw their balances drop down to zero among the bitcoin buzz