Manufactured steel and aluminum products to face 50% tariff in the U.S.

The United States Department of Commerce (USTR) has included all manufactured products containing steel or aluminum under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which allows for the imposition of specific tariffs to promote U.S. national security. This means that Brazilian exported products will now be subject to the same tariff as those from the rest of the world. The announcement was made on Thursday by Vice President Geraldo Alckmin during an interview with journalist Miriam Leitão on GloboNews.

Until now, steel and aluminum have been taxed at a rate of 50%. The USTR has now also included products derived from steel or aluminum—those that contain these metals in their composition. This means that Brazil, which had been losing competitiveness on these products, will now face the same 50% tariff as other competing countries. The decision applies even to agricultural machinery, a category Brazil exports heavily to the United States.

According to the Vice President, the measure means that around US$2.6 billion in Brazilian exports to the U.S. will regain competitiveness. “We will not give up. We will continue to negotiate continuously,” said Alckmin, although he admitted that the last direct conversation with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick took place a few weeks ago. “But the technical teams continue to work, and more than that, we have ongoing dialogue through institutional channels,” he added.

Regarding the Section 301 investigation against Brazil, the Vice President highlighted that the process allows for a defense to be presented, which was done this week, thus establishing a dialogue between the two countries. “This has happened before and was ultimately shelved,” he noted.

On Donald Trump’s demands related to the case against Jair Bolsonaro, the Vice President said that economic and political issues should not be mixed. Without naming Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro directly, he reiterated that Bolsonaro was to blame for the tariff hikes. “Unfortunately, some bad Brazilians are working abroad against Brazil—hurting the economy, businesses, and Brazilian workers.”

When asked about the tension in financial markets, particularly among banks, over Supreme Court Justice Flávio Dino’s ruling on the ineffectiveness of the Magnitsky Act in Brazil, Alckmin sought to play down the issue. “Brazil is a sovereign country. This will pass, and soon the market will return to normal. I believe it ends here,” he said, ruling out a possible escalation in sanctions against Brazilian officials.

Source: Valor Econômico

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