President Joe Biden came out in opposition to the planned sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel of Japan, saying on Thursday that the U.S. needs to “maintain strong American steel companies powered by American steel workers.”

In a statement, Biden added: “U.S. Steel has been an iconic American steel company for more than a century, and it is vital for it to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.”

Nippon Steel announced in December that it planned to buy the Pittsburgh-based steel producer for $14.1 billion in cash, raising concerns about what the transaction could mean for unionized workers, supply chains and U.S. national security.

Retail sales tick up in February

Americans picked up their spending a bit in February after pulling back the previous month. But last month’s gain was weaker than expected, and January’s decline was revised even lower, suggesting that many are growing more cautious with their money.

Retail sales rose 0.6% last month after falling a revised 1.1% in January, dragged down in part by inclement weather, according to the Commerce Department’s report on Thursday.

February’s number was also lifted in part by higher gas price as well as higher auto sales and a rebound in building materials, which were depressed by severe weather during the prior month.

Excluding sales from gas stations and auto dealers, sales rose 0.3%.

The national average gas price Thursday was $3.41 per gallon, per AAA, up from$3.39 a week ago, and $3.26 last month.

Government retail data isn’t adjusted for inflation, which ticked up 0.4% from January to February, higher than the previous month’s figure of 0.3%, according to the latest government report. So retailers only eked out a slight increase accounting for inflation.