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Credit plan vs tariffs
Brazil unveiled 18.5 billion reais ($3.65 billion) in new credit lines to support companies affected by the United States’ additional 25% tariff on Brazilian products, with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva saying, “We are not going to sit and cry over the products we did not sell to them, because we will look for other buyers.”
“Agricultural machines are displayed at a store in Formosa, Goias, Brazil, July 22, 2026”
The funding is described as the third phase of the Sovereign Brazil program, launched last year in response to an initial round of U.S. tariffs, and it is framed as subsidized credit lines meant to help industries diversify their export destinations.
In parallel, the Brazilian government said it would continue negotiations with Washington while also pursuing new export markets, and it said the credit facility can be used for working capital, the purchase of capital goods, productive investments, technological innovation, and exploring and opening new export markets.
A separate report from Xinhua Español said Brazil’s Vice President and Minister of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services Geraldo Alckmin argued that the Law of Reciprocidad is not meant as “La idea no es la represalia. La reciprocidad significa que estamos siendo perjudicados y queremos corregir esa situación.”
Management strain on firms
A Valor International analysis said the additional 25% tariff on certain Brazilian products exported to the U.S. is raising concerns among Brazil’s mid-sized companies, particularly because many are concentrated in the business-to-business (B2B) market.
Diego Marconatto, a professor at Fundação Dom Cabral, said the tariffs are “one more factor in a business environment that’s growing more volatile and unpredictable by the day,” and he warned that mid-sized firms may respond by cutting prices.
The same report cited Mid Falconi’s management maturity assessment, saying 83% of companies rank at the lowest maturity levels and that 60% of mid-sized companies lack a structured strategic planning process.
Rafael Silveira, partner and chief executive officer of Mid Falconi, said, “We see that 75% of companies don’t have a well-established project management methodology,” and he linked readiness for international markets to putting strategic planning in place.
Leonardo Briganti of Briganti Advogados said the 6.6% decline in Brazilian exports in 2025 showed that U.S. protectionism has “real effects,” and he described the choices facing owners as absorbing costs, passing them on, or redirecting production to other markets.
Negotiations and market shifts
Xinhua Español reported that Washington announced a 25% tariff on Brazilian products and studied applying an additional 12.5% in certain cases, while Brazil said the measures would affect about 18% of exports to the United States, equivalent to about 7.400 millones de dólares.
The report also said the Brazilian government planned to intensify the search for new export destinations with attention to India, Mexico, Singapur, Japón and other Southeast Asian countries, while accelerating negotiations of agreements between Mercosur and the European Union, EFTA and Singapore.
It added that the government expected to know this Friday whether the U.S. would apply the additional 12.5% tariff tied to forced labor accusations, and it said the 29 de julio would mark when the 25% surcharge begins for goods already in transit.
In a separate account, La República quoted Lula saying, “We will be at the negotiating table with our proposals (...) We won't cry about what we couldn't sell them because we will seek other buyers,” as the president launched a new stage of the Brazil Soberano program.
La República also said Márcio Elias Rosa told Reuters that the investigation into alleged forced labor should be managed without extra tax burdens, quoting, “We maintain that it should not be cumulative.”
