The president of the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX-Brasil), Jorge Viana, said on Monday (11) that while China is Brazil’s largest market, the “best market” is the United States. He explained that Brazil’s export mix to the U.S. is more diversified than what it sells to China.
“Our export mix is very diversified. This diversity is significant and means we have a strong presence of Brazilian companies exporting to the United States,” he said.
Mr. Viana spoke during the opening of the Brazilian Agribusiness Congress in São Paulo, organized by the Brazilian Agribusiness Association (ABAG) and B3, Brazil’s stock exchange. He noted that discussions about the U.S. tariffs on Brazilian exports would be easier if they were limited to economic matters.
“But these discussions carry political issues that are difficult to address,” Mr. Viana said, without making a direct reference to the situation of former President Jair Bolsonaro, which U.S. President Donald Trump cited as one of the reasons for imposing economic sanctions on Brazil.
Mr. Viana said APEX-Brasil is opening an office in Washington D.C. to strengthen its presence in the U.S. The agency already has offices in Miami, San Francisco and New York. He promised regular meetings with all sectors affected by the tariffs to seek solutions for trade with the U.S.
He also called for a coordinated effort to defend Brazilian products. In his view, foods in general and products that the U.S. does not produce could be excluded from the import tariffs, citing as an example Brazilian coffee, which was not included in the list of exceptions presented by the Trump administration.
“We can have allies there [in the U.S.], we can bring together business sectors there, and according to their interests, they will help us avoid some of these situations that affect our trade,” he said.
Mr. Viana also said APEX-Brasil is organizing trade missions to Indonesia, Malaysia and India, with agribusiness participation. “Our commitment is to step up efforts to defend Brazilian products and secure more space in foreign markets,” he added.