By Trevor Hunnicutt and Eduardo Simoes
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct. 26 (Reuters) – Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he had a positive meeting on Sunday with U.S. President Donald Trump, and their respective teams will start “immediately” to discuss tariffs and other matters.
Trump and Lula spoke on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in a meeting to overcome tensions between Brazil and the United States after Trump increased tariffs on U.S. imports of most Brazilian goods to 50% from 10% in August.
“We agreed that our teams will meet immediately to advance the search for solutions to the tariffs and sanctions against Brazilian authorities,” Lula said in a social media post following the meeting.
Trump had linked the tariff move to what he called a “witch hunt” against Jair Bolsonaro, the South American country’s former president. The U.S. government also put sanctions on a number of Brazilian officials, including Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the trial that led to Bolsonaro’s conviction for attempting a coup.
Ahead of the meeting on Sunday though, Trump said he could reach some agreements with Lula.
“I think we should be able to make some pretty good deals for both countries,” Trump said.
Lula previously described the tariff hike as a “mistake”, citing a $410 billion U.S. trade surplus with Brazil over 15 years.
Brazil’s Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira said negotiations will start immediately to work on solutions and a meeting with the U.S. delegation was planned for Sunday.
“We will establish a negotiation schedule and establish the sectors we will talk about so that we can move forward,” Vieira told journalists at the summit, adding that Brazil had requested that tariffs be suspended during the negotiation process.
It was not immediately clear if the United States agreed to the request.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer were present at the meeting, Vieira said.
“We hope to conclude bilateral negotiations that address each of the sectors of the current American (tariffs on) Brazil in the near future, in a few weeks,” Vieira added.
Bolsonaro was not mentioned in the meeting, said Marcio Rosa, the executive secretary for Brazil’s ministry of development, industry and commerce, who stood next to Vieira.
Higher U.S. tariffs on Brazilian goods have begun reshaping the global beef trade, pushing up prices in the United States and encouraging triangulation via third countries such as Mexico, while Brazilian exports to its biggest beef market, China, are booming.
Brazilian beef industry group Abiec said it viewed the meeting between the two leaders as a positive step.
“The understanding between the two countries can preserve the competitiveness of the Brazilian product, guarantee predictability for exporters and expand the presence of (Brazilian) beef in the North American market,” it said in a statement.
Globally, Brazil’s total beef exports, including fresh and processed meat, edible offal and tallow, generated $1.92 billion in revenue in September, with volumes reaching 373,867 metric tons, up 49% in value and 17% in volume year-on-year.
Brazilian coffee industry group ABIC said it was confident in the historic partnership between the two countries. Brazil is the world’s top coffee producer and exporter, while the United States is the biggest importer.
“The recent meetings between the presidents of the United States and Brazil have been more positive, and at ABIC we are optimistic,” ABIC president Pavel Cardoso said in a statement.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and Eduardo Simoes; Additional reporting by Roberto Samora; Writing by Oliver Griffin; Editing by John Mair, David Stanway, Will Dunham, and Elaine Hardcastle)
