Lawmakers urges U.S. Treasury to reject Aleris sale to China aluminum giant

More than two dozen U.S. lawmakers have urged U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to reject the proposed sale of U.S. aluminum products maker Aleris Corp to China Zhongwang Holdings Ltd to protect U.S. security interests. In a June 9 letter to Mnuchin shared with Reuters, the 27 lawmakers said it would be a "strategic misstep" to allow the $2.33 billion sale to go ahead. "It is critical that CFIUS (Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States) exercise extreme caution when a foreign investment transaction includes the transfer of military proficiencies and sensitive technology to China," the lawmakers wrote. Lawmakers who signed the new letter include House of Representative Democrats David Loebsack, Tim Ryan, Gene Green, Debbie Dingell, Seth Moulton, Marcy Kapur, Pete Aguilar, Tony Cardenas, Brenda Lawrence, Norma Torres, Linda Sanchez, and Republicans Robert Pittenger, Keith Rothfus, and French Hill.