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Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that his administration will hit Brazil with a 50% tariff on products sent to the US, tying the move to what he called the “witch-hunt” trial against its former president, Jair Bolsonaro.
Posting letters on Truth Social, the US president had earlier in the day targeted seven other countries – the Philippines, Brunei, Moldova, Algeria, Libya, Iraq and Sri Lanka – for stiff US tariffs on foreign exports starting on 1 August.
On Wednesday afternoon, Trump avoided his standard form letter with Brazil, and criticized the trial Bolsonaro is facing over trying to overturn his 2022 election loss. Trump has described Bolsonaro as a friend and hosted the former Brazilian president at his Mar-a-Lago resort when both were in power in 2020.
“This Trial should not be taking place,” Trump wrote in the letter posted on Truth Social on Wednesday. “It is a witch hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!”
He said the 50% tariffs on Brazil would be “separate from all sectoral tariffs”.
After the news, Brazil’s real currency added to earlier losses to fall more than 2% against the dollar.
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, rejected Trump’s demand that legal proceedings against Bolsonaro be dropped and his claim that a 50% tariff on Brazilian imports was necessary to close a trade deficit that does not, in fact, exist.
In a statement posted on social media and his government’s website, the Brazilian president responded, point by point, to the claims made by Trump in a letter addressed to him earlier on Wednesday.
“Brazil is a sovereign nation with independent institutions and will not accept any form of tutelage,” Lula began.
He then pointed out that the charges against Bolsonaro, for allegedly plotting to remain in power after losing his bid for re-election, “fall exclusively under the jurisdiction of Brazil’s Judicial Branch and, as such, are not subject to any interference or threats that could compromise the independence of national institutions”.
Trump also objected to Brazil’s supreme court fining of social media companies such as Twitter/X, saying the temporary blocking last year amounted to “SECRET and UNLAWFUL Censorship Orders”. Trump said he is launching an investigation as a result under section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which applies to companies with trade practices that are deemed unfair to US companies.
Lula also rejected Trump’s claim that Brazil’s efforts to regulate the operations of US social media platforms on its territory in accordance with its own laws are not, as Trump had claimed, a form of censorship.
“Brazilian society rejects hateful content, racism, child pornography, scams, fraud, and speeches against human rights and democratic freedom” Lula wrote. “In Brazil, freedom of expression must not be confused with aggression or violent practices. All companies—whether domestic or foreign—must comply with Brazilian law in order to operate within our territory.”
The US president had been scheduled to hike tariffs on dozens of countries on Wednesday. Earlier this week he announced a fresh three-week delay, to 1 August, but started announcing new rates that countries would face unless they strike a deal with the White House.
After announcing plans on Monday for US tariffs of up to 40% on goods imported from 14 countries, including Bangladesh, Japan and South Korea, Trump wrote to the leaders of more countries on Wednesday, and published each letter.
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He claimed exporters in Algeria, Iraq, Libya and Sri Lanka would face a US tariff of 30%, while exporters in Brunei, Moldova and the Philippines would face a 25% tariff.
“These Tariffs may be modified, upward or downward, depending on our relationship with your Country,” Trump wrote. A string of delays and rate changes have frustrated businesses in the US and around the world.
On Tuesday, Trump vowed to introduce US tariffs of up to 200% on foreign drugs and 50% on copper, propelling US prices of the latter to record highs.
But appearing alongside the leaders of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania and Senegal at the White House on Wednesday, the president indicated that the five African nations were unlikely to face US tariffs as they intended to lower their own tariffs on US exports.
The US president’s latest threats have heightened fears that his erratic trade strategy risks exacerbating inflation across the US, having repeatedly pledged on the campaign trail to bring down prices rapidly.
Trump appears aware of this apprehension. “I brought down costs more than any President in recorded history,” he wrote on social media late on Tuesday. “The Crooked Democrats are using the opposite narrative, even though they know it is a total LIE.”
Analysis by Oxford Economics indicated that the US effective tariff rate on imports from overseas would rise to about 20% after the latest tariff letters. “That is up from 17% but less than our recession threshold of 25%-28%,” said Michael Pearce, its deputy US economist at Oxford Economics.
“Our assumption is that most countries will secure a deal or extension to avoid tariff increases,” said Pearce. “However, the risks are skewed toward higher rates.”
While Trump and his allies have sought to pressure the Federal Reserve into cutting interest rates, the central bank’s top officials – led by its chair, Jerome Powell – have so far refused, as they wait to see the impact of his tariffs on the economy.
Minutes taken from the Fed’s latest rate-setting meeting, released on Wednesday, disclosed that only “a couple” of its officials said they felt interest rates could fall as soon as its next meeting, later this month.
“Most participants” at the Fed meeting – at which rates were kept on hold last month – anticipated rate cuts later this year, according to the minutes, with any price shock caused by Trump’s tariffs expected to be “temporary or modest”.
Robert Mackey contributed reporting
