Brazil initiates WTO dispute regarding US tariffs
These developments impose a 10% duty on all Brazilian products and an additional 40% duty on certain products of Brazilian origin.
The request was circulated to WTO members on August 11.
Brazil claims the measures are inconsistent with the United States' obligations under various provisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 and the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) by seeking redress through tariff measures, rather than with recourse to the rules and procedures of the DSU.
The request for consultations formally initiates a dispute in the WTO.
Consultations give the parties an opportunity to discuss the matter and to find a satisfactory solution without proceeding further with litigation.
After 60 days, if consultations have failed to resolve the dispute, Brazil may request adjudication by a WTO panel.
The initial phase of the dispute resolution process will involve representatives from both countries coming together in order to find common ground.
Only after such mandatory consultations have failed to produce a satisfactory solution within 60 days may the complainant request adjudication by a panel of the DSU.
The majority of disputes so far in the WTO have not proceeded beyond consultations, either because a satisfactory settlement was found, or because the complainant decided for other reasons not to pursue the matter further.
In its communication with the WTO, Brazil specifically cites a letter, dated July 5, 2025, sent by US President Donald Trump to the president of Brazil.
The communication indicated that, from August 1, 2025 the United States would impose import duties of 50% on all products from Brazil.
According to the Brazilian authorities, the letter provides a rationale for this decision which it claims to be entirely unrelated to the economic relations between Brazil and the US or to the subject matter of the covered agreements.
Among the purported concerns identified by the US president in his letter are the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro before Brazil's Federal Supreme Court, and alleged "attacks" on free elections and free speech rights of Americans, as exemplified by Brazil's Federal Supreme Court orders against US social media companies.
Again, according to the Brazilian authorities, the letter also incorrectly states that purported "trade deficits" with the United States constitute a "major threat" to the US economy and national security, when in fact the US has a trade surplus with Brazil.
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