Category postponed strike; according to Renan Filho, there is not “a spontaneous movement”, but “people with diffuse” and “political” interests
The Minister of Transport, (MDB), said that, at this moment, “It’s not worth it for truck drivers to go on strike”. He stated that, in his view, there is no “a spontaneous movement” in favor of the strike, but “people with diffuse interests” e “politicians”.
On Thursday (March 19, 2026), groups representing truck drivers from different regions of Brazil decided to strike for at least 7 days, which they were considering carrying out throughout the country. They will meet again next week.
The category’s decision came after one that toughens punishments for non-compliance with the minimum floor for road freight. The document establishes the possibility of a fine of up to R$10 million per operation in case of repeated non-compliance.
In an interview with the newspaper published this Friday (20th March), Renan stated that the measures announced on Thursday (19th March) “they stretched a lot” tension with truck drivers.
“Now, the price of oil is an external complication. In an environment of war, the price of oil rises, and this affects the whole world, it will affect Brazil too. I don’t think it’s worth it for truck drivers to go on strike”said the minister.
Regarding the measure announced on Thursday (19th March), Renan declared that the government is not dealing with the average price.
“If there is a minimum floor, you cannot receive, for each trip, an individual amount below the category’s minimum floor per km driven. There is an attempt to create arguments to hide the minimum freight price, but the price, in fact, is how much you paid for the trip made, it is how much the truck driver receives per km driven”these.
According to him, it is the large corporations that fail to pay the minimum freight. The minister declared that only the fine applied by the (National Land Transport Agency) was no longer having any effect.
“In some segments, it becomes an operational cost. The guy pays and continues not to comply because perhaps it is more advantageous than complying. The provisional measure brings proportionality. It starts with measures of lesser impact, checks whether the company is a repeat offender and, in case of recurrence, the intent is verified”he declared.
In case of recurrence and recurrent practice, stated Renan, the company “You may even have your registration to transport revoked, including liability from the company’s own partners”.
It will be up to ANTT to determine what will happen to repeat offender companies.
DIESEL
Renan spoke about the impact of the rise in diesel prices in Brazil on March 12th by the president’s government (PT). The initiative includes reducing taxes and creating a fuel subsidy, with R$30 billion in public accounts until December 31, 2026.
The measure was adopted after the rise in the price of oil on the international market, associated with the escalation of conflicts involving the United States, Israel and Iran. Diesel is considered strategic for the Brazilian economy because it influences the cost of transporting cargo and, consequently, the price of food and other products.
The decree reinforces supervision of the fuel market. The ANP (National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels) gains powers to punish distributors that:
- retain stocks without justification;
- abusively raise prices.
For the minister, the actions do not have a populist character. “Diesel is a representative cost for the entire economy and inflationary. The government has two alternatives: either act and have a fiscal cost, or let the increase in oil impact the cost of everything and reduce people’s purchasing power”he stated.
“If the government removed the tax, the market must pass on the tax reduction. Otherwise, it privatizes the tax. The only thing it cannot do is want to keep a tax that was public and now become a profit margin. It’s the same thing as shipping: the guy doesn’t pay the price, and the price below becomes a margin for him. Regarding the tax issue, it makes sense to discuss”these.
