As a tax lawyer considers the innocuous actions, a former World Bank Economist argues that measures cannot be broad
The debate on the Brazilian government’s response to the increase in tariffs in the United States has gained a counterpoint between experts heard by the Poder360.
On the one hand, tax lawyer Flavia Holanda Gaeta has criticized the measures adopted so far, while economist Claudio Frischtak has defended the government’s attitude as an initial step.
Flavia Gaeta was emphatic in evaluating government actions: “Government measures are frankly innocuous. They do not solve the structural problem of our foreign trade and our lack of competitiveness. We need internal reforms to make Brazil stronger, rather than focusing only on punctual responses to tariffs.”.
For the expert, the measures reintegrates and drawback They are inefficient. In Reitegra, micro and small companies will receive tax credit to up to 6% of the exported amount, while other companies will have the rate high to 3.1%. THE drawbackBenefit that allows the industry to import inputs without taxation, with the commitment to export the final product within a fixed period, was postponed for 1 year.
Flavia explains that Reintegra’s ineffectiveness lies in the fact that, with the imposition of tariffs, exporters will not be able to sell their products to the US, which will result in the absence of revenue. As a result, the promised credit will not exist.
About drawback, According to her, postponing the deadline for export, as proposed by the government, is a measure that only gives a “breath” temporary for the exporter.
“The postponement does not solve the lack of customer and market. If the US fees prevent exports, the entrepreneur will still have to bear the tax costs, with interest and fine, at the end of the regime, because the postponement is not an amnesty.”
Already the economist and president of Inter B Consultoria, Claudio Fireschtak, who was principal economist From the World Bank, he considers that help should neither be exaggerated nor underestimated.
For the expert, the repercussion of the fare is small in macroeconomic terms for Brazil, but may have a significant effect on the cost of living of the American consumer, which in the medium term can lead the US to review its policy.
For products such as coffee, acai and meat, global demand remains, according to the economist. Market change can benefit the Brazilian consumer, but will result in a price shock for the American.
Frischtak bets that when the US government objectively notices that tariffs are impacting the cost of living of its citizens, the list of exceptions is likely to be expanded.
Focus on micro and small
The President of Interb suggests that any support from the Brazilian government is cautiously directed. “The focus should be on micro, small and medium -sized export companies, especially in segments that have difficulty finding new markets quickly or reorienting production to the domestic market, such as fish.”
