MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil’s Finance Minister: Trump's tariffs damage global trade

Haddad will discuss the matter deeper with representatives of Brazil's steel and aluminum sectors when he returns from his Feb.14-20 Middle East tour

Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad stressed Tuesday that US President Donald Trump's decision to impose 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports was “counterproductive” to the global economy. “The global economy loses with this, with this retraction, with this de-globalization that is happening,” he added.

“This doesn't mean defending the old globalization that brought other imbalances but defending a type of sustainable globalization, from a social point of view, from an environmental point of view, but we are in line with what we proposed at the G20,” he went on while explaining that Brazil's Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services (Mdic) was handling the negotiations with Washington in this regard.

“But we are following up. Firstly, knowing the details of the decision, and secondly, observing what implications this will have, because it's not a decision against Brazil, it's a general thing for everyone, so we're observing the reactions of Mexico, Canada, and China in this regard,” he elaborated.

So far, Trump has made no exceptions. Regarding Brazil's chances of clinching a more favorable deal as in the past, Haddad reckoned that he still does not know what the US ultimately seeks with this measure.

The minister also said he met frequently with representatives of the steel and aluminum sector and would be holding another encounter after returning from his Feb.14-20 Middle East tour.

Haddad also explained that “we've seen the reactions of Mexico, Canada, and China” but recalled that the US - also under Trump - backed down from similar tariffs in 2018, opting for a system of import quotas.