U.S. President Donald Trump said Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion bid for U.S. Steel would take the form of an investment instead of a purchase on Friday, even as two sources familiar with the matter said the Japanese steel company had not withdrawn its bid.

President Trump said Friday that Japan's Nippon Steel will drop its $14.1 billion bid to acquire U.S. Steel and instead "invest heavily" in the company.

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.