The rift between the US and Brazil is deepening, as Brasília’s leader pushed back against President Donald Trump’s sky-high tariffs.
Trump on Wednesday imposed 50% tariffs on the South American heavyweight, following through on his threat to retaliate against Brazil’s prosecution of his ally, former President Jair Bolsonaro, on coup charges; Washington also sanctioned the judge overseeing the case.
But the punitive moves haven’t deterred Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who told The New York Times that he wasn’t “afraid” of Trump. The two countries, Lula said, are moving “from a 201-year-old diplomatic relationship of win-win, to a political relationship of lose-lose.” But the tariff furor is boosting domestic support for Lula, The Economist’s Brazil bureau chief said.
