The interim president stated that Donald Trump’s new measure will make the products out; said to regret and that the way is the dialogue
Interim President and Minister of Industry and Commerce, Geraldo Alckmin, said on Wednesday (4.Jun.2025) that the increase in steel and aluminum imposed by the United States is “bad for everyone.” According to him, the products must make it expensive, but Brazil will continue to encourage dialogue on the subject.
“Look, in relation to steel, first to say that as the United States, the president, took yesterday, increasing import tax from 25% to 50%, it was not just for Brazil, it went to the whole world. So it’s not bad for Brazil, it’s bad for everyone, because you will make the products out.”he declared, after attending an event in Arinos (MG).
Alckmin repeated that, in the case of steel, Brazil and the United States have an economic complementarity. That is, while exporting a lot of steel to Americans, we also import raw materials for steel and products prepared with Brazilian exports.
He claimed to regret the increase in the rate, but the way is to encourage dialogue. According to the president, of the 10 products that Americans export most to Brazil, 8 have no import tariff.
“A working group was created on the side of Brazil, formed by the Midic (Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs … We have had face -to -face meetings and for conferencing and we will deepen this dialogue and highlight that Brazil is no problem for the United States.”these.
Understand
On Tuesday (3.Jun), Trump signed a decree to increase rates, previously fixed by 25%, to 50%. Brazil must be one of the countries most affected by the measure, as the United States is the largest Brazilian steel buyer and the 2nd largest aluminum.
The new tariffs imposed by the President of the United States, Donald Trump (Republican Party), on steel and aluminum, came into force on Wednesday (4.Jun).
“Steel articles are imported to the United States in quantities and circumstances that threaten to compromise national security”Says the decree signed by Trump.
According to the United States government, the measure seeks to protect US industries from commercial practices considered unfair by Trump management. The decision is based on, which authorizes the president to adjust imports when there is a threat to national security. The decree was not a surprise. Trump already on Friday (30.mai) that would double the rates.
According to the, “The United States do not want to be in a position in which they would be unable to meet the demand for national defense and critical infrastructure in a national emergency”.
Impact for Brazil
Anterior 25% of the United States on Brazil’s steel and aluminum imports on March 12.
The steel and aluminum segment sold $ 5.29 billion last year to the US. It represented 39.4% of what Brazilians exported to the world in 2024.
As will work
New rates will only apply to steel and aluminum products as components, but are not entirely made of these metals.
The other components will continue to be subject to existing tariffs for each product category.
The US government will harden control over import statements, requiring rigorous reports of the metal content of the products. Companies that provide false information can be fined or lose the right to import.
The measure is a return to, when steel and aluminum tariffs have led to a fall of almost ⅓ in imports from 2016 to 2020.
Also according to the White House statement, the use of US steel industry capacity fell from 80% by 2021 to 75.3% in 2023. In the aluminum sector, the index plummeted from 61% in 2019 to 55% by 2023.
Trump had already restored and strengthened the tariffs of Section 232 in early 2025, a decision “widely celebrated”For the affected sectors, according to the White House.
