Trump removes 40pc tariffs on Brazil’s beef, coffee

: Agriculture
25/11/21

The US removed 40pc tariffs on imports of Brazilian beef, coffee and fruits imposed in August, the White House said on Thursday.

The new executive order goes into effect retroactively on "goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption" after 12:01am ET on 13 November — the same date that Brazil's foreign affairs minister Mauro Vieira and the US secretary of state Marco Rubio met in Washington, DC, to discuss tariffs and bilateral deals, the Brazilian foreign affairs ministry (MRE) said.

In the executive order, President Donald Trump mentioned his phone call with Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on 6 October and recommendations from officials to lift additional tariffs on agricultural products as "there has been initial progress in negotiations with the Government of Brazil."

Earlier this week Trump lifted a 10pc tariff imposed on the same products in April, reducing tariffs on orange juice to zero. But tariffs on coffee and beef were still high and unreasonable, Brazil's vice president and trade ministry Geraldo Alckmin said.

Lula praised the lower tariffs in an online statement and said he remains optimistic about further negotiations with Trump. Additional US tariffs remain in place on imports of Brazilian fertilizers, minerals, fossil fuels and oil products, according to MRE.

The Brazilian association of beef exporters Abiec lauded the executive order as a reinforcement to global trade stability and market competitiveness. Monthly Brazilian beef exports to the US have halved in August-October from a year earlier under a 76pc tariff on out-of-quota cargoes.

By João Curi

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