US Imposes 25% Tariff on Brazilian Imports Over Alleged Unfair Trade Practices

The United States is imposing a 25 percent tariff on imports from Brazil after concluding that the world’s 10th-largest economy has engaged in a range of what Washington considers unfair trade practices.

The tariffs, initially proposed last month, will take effect on July 22.

The order exempts certain goods that are not produced domestically in the United States or that officials believe could disrupt supply chains. Exempted products include coffee, beef, oranges and orange juice, certain oil and gas products, and aerospace parts and components.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative concluded after a yearlong investigation that Brazil had engaged in several unfair trade practices, including weak anti-corruption enforcement and its own allegedly unfair tariffs, among other practices deemed unreasonable and discriminatory. The United States, however, has maintained a goods trade surplus with Brazil for years.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the action was necessary to ensure that American workers and companies compete on a level playing field.

“Extensive negotiations with Brazil over the past year have not resolved these issues, but we remain open to continuing negotiations with Brazil to bring about long-needed changes to the problems identified in this investigation,” he said in a statement.

When U.S. officials warned in early June that the tariffs were being considered, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva reacted angrily. He instead pointed to political motivations, blaming Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, a rival of the Brazilian president in the country’s October elections. Bolsonaro had recently visited Washington and is the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of President Donald Trump.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also defended the tariffs in a post on X, saying that the measures were the result of what he described as Brazil’s failure to negotiate with the United States in good faith.

The tariffs are being imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorizes the United States to investigate and respond to unfair foreign trade practices.

In February, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against many of Trump’s tariffs imposed under a different law, the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977. The court found that Trump had exceeded his authority under the law by imposing sweeping tariffs on U.S. trading partners, including Brazil.

Under that law, Trump had previously imposed a 50 percent tariff on Brazil in protest against the prosecution of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for allegedly attempting to overturn his defeat in the 2022 election. However, relations between Trump and Lula appeared to improve in May when the Brazilian president visited the White House.