Japan's Nippon Steel is considering proposing a bold change in plan from its previous approach of seeking to buy U.S. Steel, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said on Monday, though the company declined to comment.

Days after a surprise announcement from President Donald Trump about a $14.9 billion deal, the companies involved have remained mum.

President Donald Trump on Friday said Japan’s Nippon Steel agreed to drop its nearly $15 billion bid to acquire U.S. Steel and will “heavily” invest in the company instead, ending a yearlong deal to merge the two companies after bipartisan opposition.

Japan's Nippon Steel on Monday declined to comment on U.S. President Donald Trump's statement that no one can have a majority stake in U.S. Steel. Trump made the statement on Sunday when speaking to reporters on Air Force One.

President Trump supports the Japanese company’s taking a stake in the American steel maker after the U.S. blocked a $14 billion takeover bid.

President Donald Trump is suggesting that Nippon Steel will no longer buy U.S. Steel as planned, but the Japanese company will instead invest in the symbolically important American business.

Global hedge funds have been snapping up Chinese stocks for much of this year, with their buying accelerating in the past week as the emergence of homegrown artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek fueled investor enthusiasm, Goldman Sachs said in a note.

Nippon Steel will make a "bold proposal" in its effort to invest in US Steel, Japan's top government spokesperson said on Monday.