My thoughts exactly. In the 1980s Japanese investors bought tons of plumb companies and properties, like Pebble Beach, Fox Plaza (renamed Nakatomi Plaza), and Rockefeller Center. But the reason they were able to buy them is they overpaid. Later, they were forced to walk away from many of these.
In this case, the Japanese offer was double the domestic offer. From the article:
Mr Johnson said Nippon was “grossly overpaying” noting that US steel had been “underperforming” for many years.