According to statements by the minister of Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade and Services (MDIC)Brazilian Minister Márcio Elias Rosa stated that the federal government is working with Chinese authorities to review the current quota for Brazilian beef exports to the country. The minister spoke about the issue after participating in a seminar celebrating National Industry Day, promoted by the Federation of Industries of the State of Rio de Janeiro. Currently, China maintains an annual quota of 1.1 million tons for the import of Brazilian beef, with a 12% tariff. Volumes shipped above this limit are taxed at 55%. “Brazil manages to export beyond the quota and is still competitive. But ideally, we would have no quota. No [tax] burden,” the minister stated. According to Márcio Elias Rosa, the Brazilian government is seeking to advance negotiations to revise the mechanism as early as next year. “We are building a good dialogue so that, next year, we can review this safeguard of the export quota,” he emphasized. When commenting on other issues related to foreign trade, the minister also expressed optimism regarding negotiations for a trade agreement between Mercosur and Canada. According to him, about 60% of the negotiations are already aligned. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is leading this dialogue with Canada. But I would say there is already a consensus on around 60% of what needs to be negotiated,” he stated. “The expectation is that it will happen this year, still during President Lula's third term. It shouldn't take 20 years, as it did with Mercosur and the European Union,” he added.
This text was translated by machine from Brazilian Portuguese.