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Investing.com -- U.S. Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) gained in early trading Thursday following reports that Dan Loeb’s Third Point LLC hedge fund has accumulated a stake in the company and is hopeful that a merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel will be completed.

Shares of U.S. Steel last traded up 1% as the stock market opened on Thursday.

In a letter to investors, seen by Reuters News, Loeb highlighted Third Point’s belief that the merger between U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel, previously stalled, is now poised to move forward. This renewed optimism follows an executive order by President Donald Trump last month, which initiated a fresh national security review and has rekindled hopes for the deal’s potential success.

The original plan for U.S. Steel to join forces with Nippon Steel had hit a roadblock earlier in the year. However, the intervention by the Trump administration has led to speculation that the merger could still come to fruition. Third Point’s stake in U.S. Steel suggests the hedge fund sees substantial value in the prospective combination of the two steel industry giants.

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