Brazil: Import tariff cut for whey, motorcycle airbags

The Brazilian government has brought to zero the import tariffs levied on motorcycle airbags, informed the country’s Ministry of Economy on Aug. 17th.

The product rate is currently 35% for imports made by Mercosur countries, but Brazil has included the item — jackets and vests with built-in airbags — in the list of exceptions to the bloc’s common external tariff.

The ministry said in an official statement that another six customs codes were included in the list of exceptions to either have their tariffs brought to zero or reduced to 4%, including food supplements and whey.

This reduction comes at a time of skyrocketing prices for a liter of milk, which greatly influenced inflation indexes in Brazil in July and even exceeded the value of gasoline in cities like São Paulo.

The price of long-life milk soared by 25.46% in July in the country, according to IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics).

The surge in milk prices came after an advance of 10.72% in the previous month (June). In the year, the product started to accumulate a high of 77.84% until July. In 12 months, the increase reached 66.46%.

The rise in prices is associated with at least two factors. The first is the off-season period, which usually reduces the supply of milk on the market from March to September or October. The second is the escalation of production costs. During the pandemic, inputs such as animal feed, fertilizers, and fuel became more expensive. The side effect is the pass-through to prices on supermarket shelves.

Milk derivatives also rose in prices in July. Cheese prices advanced by 5.28%. Powdered milk became 5.36% more expensive. Butter prices inflated by 5.75%. Condensed milk recorded an even higher rise, 6.66%.

Source: Folha de S. Paulo

To read the full original article, please go to: https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/mercado/2022/08/governo-reduz-tarifa-do-soro-de-leite-e-zera-tarifa-de-importacao-de-airbag-para-motociclista.shtml

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