Lula government exempts import taxes to reduce food prices and combat inflation in Brazil.
The Executive Management Committee (GECEX) of the Chamber of Foreign Trade (Camex), an agency of the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (MDIC), decided, on Thursday (13), in an extraordinary meeting, to reduce to zero import tax rates of 11 foods.
The deliberation is part of the measure announced on March 6, at the Planalto Palace, by the Vice-President and Minister of MDIC, Geraldo Alckmin, in conjunction with the Ministries of Finance, Agriculture and Livestock, Family Development and Family Farming and Civil House, which imposed the zero reduction of import potential imports, including meats, sardines, coffee, coffee, coffee, coffee Olive, sugar, palm oil, sunflower oil, corn, pasta and cookies.
The measure approved by GECEX must come into force tomorrow (14/03). Gecex Resolution with the decision must be published today. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva guided the government to carry out initiatives that can contribute to the increase of food supply and the reduction of market prices, even though the elevation is attributed to climate and external factors. President’s decision aims especially to protect low -income families, which can allocate up to 40% of their income to food.
In the evaluation of the committee, in a meeting chaired by MDIC’s executive secretary, Márcio Elias Rosa, the tariff reduction may allow the importation of selected products at lower costs, increasing the availability of these items in the domestic market, facilitating the purchase of essential products in the national basic basket, minimizing the risk of shortage and ensuring decent conditions of subsistence to the population.
With the largest offer of the products selected in Brazil to Taxes Zerados, the decision also seeks to inhibit the high price, contributing to the compliance with the inflation target (IPCA). In addition, the committee has assessed that tariff flexibility may be another factor to contribute to other objectives, such as ensuring that any imbalances between supply and demand for climate, geopolitical, exchange rates, or production costs are mitigated by imports without import tax; Expand consumer supply and predictability, expand purchasing power and contribute to food security, a fundamental pillar of social stability.
GECEX has favored favorably the temporary reduction of import tax rates, a measure considered as emergency and selective, focused on critical products for the basic basket. Additionally, the government signals that the measure will be accompanied by other structuring actions, preserving the sustainability of the domestic production chain.
The decision included reduced import tax following products:
- Frozen, frozen cattle meats (from 10.8% to 0%);
- toasted coffee, non -decaf (except coffee packed in capsules) (went from 9% to 0%);
- non -roasted coffee, non -decaf, in grain (exceeded 9% to 0%);
- Corn in grain, except for sowing (from 7.2% to 0%);
- other food masses, not cooked, or stuffed, nor otherwise prepared (from 12.4% to 0%);
- cookies and cookies (from 16.2% to 0%);
- olive oil (olive tree) extravirgo (went from 9% to 0%);
- Sunflower oil, gross (went from 9% to 0%);
- other sugarcane sugars (from 14.4% to 0%);
- Preparations and preserves of sardines, whole or in pieces, except chopped fish, from 32% to 0%
Regarding sardines, GECEX established the rate zeroing within an established quota of 7.5 thousand tons. The committee also decided to increase the Palm oil quota of the NCM code 1511.90.00, from 60 thousand tons to 150 thousand tons, for a period of 12 months, with the maintenance of the 0%import tax rate.
*Report produced with the aid of AI
