Printed On 29 Aug 2025
Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has indicated that his authorities won’t instantly impose retaliatory tariffs on the US.
As an alternative, on Friday, he repeated his name for his US counterpart, Donald Trump, to affix him in commerce negotiations.
At present, Brazil faces 50 p.c taxes on all its exports to the US, the very best present tariff charge of any nation besides India.
Whereas Brazil has but to reply in type, on Thursday, its Chamber of International Commerce (CAMEX) started exploring whether or not countermeasures would apply beneath an area regulation.
“It is a course of that takes a little bit of time,” Lula mentioned in Friday’s interview with Radio Itatiaia. “We have now to inform the US that we even have actions we will take in opposition to them. However I’m in no rush. What I need is to barter.”
Since August 1, Brazil has confronted the steep US tariffs, as a part of Trump’s stress marketing campaign to finish a trial in opposition to his fellow far-right chief, Jair Bolsonaro.
Bolsonaro, who led Brazil as president from 2019 to 2023, has confronted a number of authorized inquiries since leaving workplace, together with for allegedly falsifying his COVID-19 vaccine information and utilizing authorities sources to undermine confidence within the election system.
However his biggest authorized hurdle is his present trial for allegedly scheming to overturn the outcomes of the 2022 election, which he narrowly misplaced to Lula.
A verdict is anticipated within the case in early September. Bolsonaro, in the meantime, has denied wrongdoing and referred to as the proceedings political persecution.
Trump has echoed these accusations. In a July 9 letter to Lula, he accused the Brazilian authorities of censoring right-wing voices and mentioned he would impose the 50 p.c tariff consequently.
“This trial shouldn’t be going down. It’s a Witch Hunt that ought to finish IMMEDIATELY!” Trump wrote.
The letter additionally included a warning in opposition to any retaliatory measures: “If for any purpose you resolve to lift your Tariffs, then, regardless of the quantity you select to lift them by, will probably be added onto the 50% that we cost.”
The Trump administration has additionally imposed sanctions and stripped visas from Brazilian officers in response to Bolsonaro’s trial.
Lula, nonetheless, has framed Trump’s actions as an effort to intervene in Brazil’s authorized course of.
On August 11, Lula’s authorities filed a criticism with the World Commerce Group, claiming the US violated worldwide agreements by imposing the 50 p.c tariff.
The US has since agreed to a session course of with the worldwide physique. Ought to that fail, a World Commerce Group panel would seemingly weigh Brazil’s case.
On Thursday, Brazil’s International Ministry, with authorisation from Lula, additionally requested that CAMEX discover whether or not a reciprocity regulation handed by Congress may very well be used to implement retaliatory measures in opposition to the US.
CAMEX can have 30 days to compile its findings about how the regulation is perhaps utilized to the US tariffs.
“I took this measure as a result of now we have to maneuver ahead with the method,” Lula instructed Radio Itatiaia on Friday. “If we proceed as required by regulation, it should take a 12 months.”
Lula has repeatedly mentioned that Trump officers have refused to barter along with his administration to decrease the hefty export taxes.
In line with the Workplace of the US Commerce Consultant, the US has a commerce surplus with Brazil, with its exports to the South American nation outstripping its imports. The full commerce in items and companies with Brazil amounted to almost $127.6bn final 12 months, a rise over 2023.
In his radio interview on Friday, Lula repeated his need to speak with Trump, emphasising he doesn’t need a commerce warfare. However, he added, Brazil won’t sacrifice its sovereignty.
“For now, Brazil is open to negotiations with the US,” Lula mentioned. “What’s completely different is that Brazil doesn’t have to bow its head to the US.”
