July 16, 2026 / 12:13 AM EDT
/ CBS/AP
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The United States is imposing 25% tariffs on imports from Brazil after finding a range of what it deemed unfair trade practices by the world's 10th-biggest economy.The tariffs, which were first proposed last month, will take effect July 22, according to senior Trump administration officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the action ahead of a formal notice posting Wednesday night.The order exempts some goods that are not produced in the U.S. or that officials worry would disrupt supply chains. Exempted products include coffee, beef, oranges and orange juice, some oil and gas energy products and aerospace parts and components."Whether it is punishing U.S. technology companies for refusing to censor political speech, backsliding on anti-corruption enforcement, or allowing Brazilian farmers to exploit illegally logged land to gain an advantage over American farmers, Brazil's unfair trading practices have prevented U.S. workers and producers from accessing this important market with over 210 million consumers," U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement.The administration is being strategic in only placing tariffs on goods that cannot be duplicated in the U.S., as well as goods that would not disrupt the economy, senior administration officials said. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative concluded after a yearlong investigation that Brazil had a range of unfair trade practices, including lax anti-corruption enforcement and unfair tariffs of its own, among other practices seen as unreasonable and unfair. The U.S., however, has had a goods trade surplus with Brazil for years.After U.S. officials in early June warned that they were proposing the tariffs, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva reacted with indignation. He instead pointed to political considerations, blaming his rival in the country's October elections, Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro had recently visited Washington and is the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, a Trump ally.
