MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil sponsors “forex anti-dumping” import barriers to compensate US dollar devaluation

Industry minister Fernando Pimentel: US dollar has lost 40% of its value since 2006

The Brazilian government will propose before the World Trade Organization the implementation of import barriers to compensate for the growing penetration of foreign produce spurred by the sustained devaluation of the US dollars in recent years, said Industry Minister Fernando Pimentel.

The discussion on the increase on import restrictions is “mature” since “all countries are facing the same problem, the sustained devaluation of the US dollar”, said Pimentel in an interview with O Estado de Sao Paulo published on Monday.

Last week Pimentel and the Minister of Finance Guido Mantega, announced a 30% increase on import taxes for (out of the region) cars, a measure which the government defined as a “defence of national industry”, which has been affected by a 40% devaluation of the US dollar since 2006.

The ‘foreign exchange anti-dumping proposal’ by Brazil means slapping a 35% tariff on all imported goods whenever the US dollar is exposed to abrupt fluctuations in a pre-arranged or pre-accorded floating range to be defined by the WTO.

The Brazilian Foreign Affairs ministry has already instructed its representative before the WTO, Ambassador Roberto Azevedo.

“To hold discussions about international trade and ignore the impact of the exchange rate is a myopia”, said ambassador Azevedo.

Meanwhile Central bank president Alexander Tombini said during a conference in the US that Brazil is not planning to impose controls to the inflow of capital.