Nippon Steel negotiator unable to meet U.S. steel union leaders

TOKYO -- A top Nippon Steel executive tasked with negotiating the company's acquisition of U.S. Steel said he was unable to secure a meeting with United Steelworkers (USW) union leaders during a trip to discuss the deal in late May.

"We received amicable reactions" from U.S. senators, local businesspeople and others but "couldn't meet USW leaders," Takahiro Mori, vice chairman and executive vice president of Nippon Steel, said in a recent interview with Nikkei. Mori is also the chief negotiator for the planned purchase.