WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� The Trump administration proposed 25% tariffs on , charging that the world鈥檚 10th-biggest economy engages in trade practices that are 鈥渦nreasonable鈥欌�� and that 鈥渂urden or restrict U.S. commerce.鈥欌��
Brazil’s President Luiz In谩cio Lula da Silva said he received the decision 鈥渨ith indignation.鈥� He also blamed the decision by the U.S. administration on his rival in October’s elections, Sen. Fl谩vio Bolsonaro, who visited Washington last week. The senator is the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, once nicknamed 鈥渢he Trump of the Tropics鈥� by his allies.
The announcement late Monday came after an investigation by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, charging Brazil with lax and unfair tariffs of its own, among other things.
The U.S. has had a goods trade surplus with Brazil for years.
U.S Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said that he and President Donald Trump had 鈥渃onstructive鈥欌�� meetings with Lula and other Brazilian officials. But he said that 鈥渨e continue to have substantial differences in resolving the issues identified in this investigation.鈥欌��
Lula on Tuesday cited other reasons for the punishing tariff proposal. For the first time he named an American official as a hurdle to his relations with Trump and .
鈥淚 spoke to President Trump for three hours, and that Marco Rubio guy, the head of the State Department, he is anti-Latin American,鈥� Lula said. 鈥淗e is a deadly enemy of Cuba, a deadly enemy of many Latin American countries. I already told Trump that he does not like Brazil.鈥�
The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond a request for comment from The Associated Press on Tuesday.
Brazil鈥檚 government said in a statement that its dialogue with American counterparts, which includes 鈥減ersonal involvement of Presidents Lula and Trump,鈥� is being 鈥漵abotaged by merely electoral and family matters鈥� of the Bolsonaros.
It added that it hopes 鈥渢he recommendations do not become effective tariffs.鈥�
鈥淏ut we stress we will adopt every measure that is capable of reducing the damage that might be caused to the national economy, to the jobs and the income of Brazilians,鈥� the country’s government said.
Last year, Trump had slapped Brazil with a 50% tariff, mainly to protest its prosecution of for trying to overturn his electoral defeat in 2022. Trump’s relationship with Lula seemed to have improved early May, when the Brazilian visited the White House.
But last week, the Trump administration designated two Brazilian gangs as , after Sen. Bolsonaro’s visit. Lula opposes the designation, which analysts say could bolster his political rival.
Sen. Bolsonaro published in his social media channels a statement he said he sent to Rubio, in which he criticizes the potential new tariff hike for it would cause 鈥渟erious damages to the Brazilian people 鈥� precisely the citizens that see the United States as a partner and a friend.鈥�
鈥淚 am writing to formally repeat the request I did to you in person, that the U.S. do not impose tariffs on Brazil,鈥� Sen. Bolsonaro said.
Greer鈥檚 office has scheduled a public hearing July 6 on the proposed tariffs.
Trade lawyer Ryan Majerus, a partner at King & Spalding, noted said that the administration鈥檚 plan excludes more than half of U.S. imports from Brazil, including aircraft and key minerals.
The Trump administration invoked of the Trade Act of 1974 to launch the investigation into Brazil鈥檚 trade practices.
Sen. Bolsonaro travelled to meet officials in Washington last week in the wake of a scandal at home in which he admitted receiving funds . Another son, former lawmaker Eduardo Bolsonaro, was also present.
On Tuesday, Trump posted a photo of the Bolsonaros in the Oval office on his social media site.
鈥淭hese sons of Bolsonaro can be worse than him. They are actually sellouts of our country, they went there to ask a foreign nation to meddle in Brazilian affairs,鈥� Lula said in a speech to residents of the city of Catalao, south of capital Brasilia. 鈥淭hey are traitors.鈥�
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in February that Trump by using a different law 鈥� the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 鈥� to impose sweeping tariffs on U.S. trading partners, including Brazil.
However, Section 301 tariffs have survived legal challenges, and the administration is likely to use that authority to impose other tariffs and to recoup some of the tax revenue lost when the Supreme Court rejected the IEEPA tariffs.
Brazil鈥檚 president said that during his visit to Washington early May, he handed Trump documents showing that the U.S. has a trade surplus with Brazil.
Documents published by the U.S. Trade Representative show that last year, U.S. exports to Brazil rose nearly 11% to $54.4 billion. Brazilian exports to the U.S. fell 5.7% to $39.9 billion, meaning the U.S. had a trade surplus of more than $14 billion.
The trade imbalance for services is more lopsided in favor of the U.S., with services exports in 2024 reaching $29.6 billion, quadruple the Brazilian services exports to the U.S.
鈥淚 am not going to cry about it,鈥� Lula said. 鈥淚f they (the U.S.) don鈥檛 want to buy from us, we will sell to someone else.鈥�
China has been Brazil鈥檚 biggest trading partner for about a decade.
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Mauricio Savarese reported from Sao Paulo.
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