US President Donald Trump escalated his trade war with Brazil on Wednesday by announcing a 50 percent import tariff on the country starting Aug. 1 for the ongoing prosecution of the country’s former president, Jair Bolsonaro. His letter was addressed to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Trump’s letter to Brazil was not his standard form. The fact that Trump singled out Brazil for 50% import taxes due to the country’s treatment of Bolsonaro demonstrates that the US leader’s use of tariffs is motivated more by personal grievances than by sound economic reasoning.
Bolsonaro is charged with trying to overturn his 2022 election loss. He is under trial for allegedly taking part in a coup to overturn his reelection defeat.
Trump has described the former Brazilian president as a friend and hosted him at his Mar-a-Lago resort when both were in office in 2020.
The letter to Brazil came after Trump sent nearly letters to 24 other international leaders, imposing new tariffs on the items they sell to the US. The letter to Lula was the latest in the series.
Meanwhile, citing a recently enacted Brazilian statute that permits the government to take proportionate countermeasures, Lula announced that his country would reciprocate to the 50% tariff rate on Brazil’s exports.
“Brazil is a sovereign country with independent institutions that will not accept being lectured by anyone,” Lula wrote on X.
After Trump announced new tariffs on Brazil, the country’s currency, lost more than 2% of its value against the US dollar.
Earlier, Trump has criticised Brazil for how it has treated Bolsonaro, an ardent supporter of the American president.
In the letter, which he made public in a Truth Social post, Trump referred to the situation as “an international disgrace.” Echoing the words he used to characterise the several criminal probes he encountered prior to winning the 2024 US presidential election, he denounced the Bolsonaro trial as a “Witch Hunt.”
Additionally, he blasted “Brazil’s insidious attacks on Free Elections, and the fundamental Free Speech Rights of Americans,” seemingly alluding to a recent decision by the Brazilian Supreme Court that might make social media companies accountable for users’ content.
The US president asserted that the country’s economy and national security are at risk due to “unsustainable Trade Deficits against the United States” brought about by Brazil’s trade policies.
However, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the US and Brazil had a $7.4 billion goods trade surplus in 2024.
In addition, Trump wrote that the US is looking into any unfair trade practices by Brazil. “Brazil’s continued attacks on the Digital Trade activities of American Companies” are the basis for the investigation, he said.