President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 50 percent tariff on Brazil, following his growing frustration with the BRICS nations’ recent meeting in Rio de Janeiro. The move comes as part of a larger effort to challenge the growing influence of the economic alliance.
According to Politico, the threat was delivered through a strongly worded letter to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, which included criticism about Brazil’s treatment of former President Jair Bolsonaro and claims about social media censorship.
“You can tell the president is pissed every time he looks at the BRICS de-dollarization effort,” said Steve Bannon, Trump’s former White House chief strategist. The Rio meeting particularly upset Trump, leading to his immediate response with the tariff threat.
BRICS nations challenge US dollar dominance and face Trump’s response
The BRICS coalition, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and six new member countries, has been pushing for independence from developed economies. Their recent suggestions about creating an alternative to the US dollar as a reserve currency have particularly angered Trump.
The group’s latest summit in Rio de Janeiro ended with a statement condemning US military strikes in Iran and criticizing protectionist measures. This prompted Trump to threaten an additional 10 percent tariff on all BRICS member countries through social media, adding to his growing list of tariffs that will increase prices on everything from oil to groceries.
The White House chose tariffs as its preferred method of punishment after deciding that other options, such as sanctions, would take too long or be too complex to implement, despite knowing these tariffs would make everyday goods more expensive for Americans. Despite the US having maintained a trade surplus with Brazil for eight years, Trump’s administration is moving forward with aggressive trade measures.
Trump’s actions are also closely tied to his friendship with former Brazilian President Bolsonaro, who, like Trump, has claimed his election loss was rigged. During a recent Cabinet meeting, Trump downplayed the BRICS threat while expressing strong concerns about attempts to move away from the US dollar as the global standard, stating that losing the dollar’s world standard position would be like losing a major world war.
Experts suggest that Brazil’s increasing alignment with China, particularly regarding yuan-denominated trade, has raised concerns among Trump’s advisers who view global dollar supremacy as crucial to US power. The threat of high tariffs appears to be part of a strategy to weaken the BRICS alliance and discourage its newer members from fully committing to the group.
Published: Jul 12, 2025 09:42 am