The leaders of the BRICS nations are convening a virtual meeting next Monday to discuss Donald Trump’s trade policy. Trump has imposed tariffs on all the BRICS countries, highest on Brazil and India, reported Bloomberg, citing four people familiar with matter.
The report said that Brazil president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is organising a virtual meeting of the BRICS leaders. It cite two Brazilian government officials, and said that President Silva wants to discuss not only the trade tariffs imposed by the US government, but also to rally other countries of the grouping in a show of multilateralism.
US President Trump has been imposing import duties on countries, forcing them to make a trade deal that favours America. However, due to India’s firm stance on a number of sectors, the two countries have not been able to sign a deal. This reportedly irked him, and thus came the 25% penalty on India for buying Russian oil totaling tariffs on India at 50%.
Previously too, Trump had warned the BRICS grouping against any step that is in the direction of “de-dollarisation”.
Trump’s tariffs on Brazil
Brazil is subjected to a tariff of 50%, if it sends its goods to the US. Trump began his trade war against Latin America’s largest economy in July this year, the report said. He first threatened to impose higher tariffs unless the country’s Supreme Court immediately halted the trial of coup against former President Jair Bolsonaro.
Despite the exemption for several goods such as airplanes and orange juice, Brazil faces severe duties imposed by Trump.
The report also mentioned that a joint statement is unlikely from the virtual meet because Trump has imposed different tariffs on different BRICS countries. Brazilian officials, Bloomberg said, also stated that Lula does not want the meeting to turn into an anti-US summit.
BRICS meet after SCO summit: Will it help tackle Trump’s tariffs
Donlad Trump has not been fond of the SCO grouping and has criticised the nations part of it on a number of occasions. His tariffs on Brazil, India and China are some of the major concerns for the group. The meet comes soon after the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, where PM Narendra Modi met Russian and Chinese Presidents, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping.
The prime minister held bilateral talks with both the leaders in a bid to tackle Trump’s trade policy.