By Brazil Stock Guide – Brazil’s Foreign Trade Chamber (Camex) approved a broad set of trade measures on Monday (Oct. 20), zeroing or renewing zero import tariffs for 43 products — mostly pharmaceuticals and clinical nutrition preparations — and tightening antidumping barriers on several Chinese goods.
The tariff reductions include oncology and autoimmune drugs such as deucravacitinib (Bristol-Myers Squibb) for psoriasis and dabrafenib mesylate for melanoma, along with ingredients for agrochemicals like phosphonomethyl iminodiacetic acid (PMIDA), used in Bayer’s crop-protection chain. The Gecex also suspended import duties for 23 specialized dietary formulas developed by Danone for infant, pediatric, and enteral feeding, addressing shortages in medical nutrition.
Other exemptions extend to medical devices such as cardiac pacemakers, which move to a 0% tariff under the Mercosur “shortage mechanism” and may later become permanently duty-free under the CT-1 committee. The committee also approved radar antennas for L-band systems (used in defense and aviation) and automotive engines for hybrid and high-efficiency gasoline vehicles, with 0% tariffs through April 2026 — a signal of policy support for the hybrid-vehicle supply chain.
In industrial inputs, companies like Weg Equipamentos Elétricos and SEB do Brasil (owner of Arno and Moulinex) benefit from lower import costs: Weg obtained a 0% tariff on neodymium-iron-boron magnets used in electric motors and generators (quota: 1 million units), while SEB secured a zero duty on induction motors for domestic fans, with a record 25 million-unit quota valid for one year.
Trade defense measures
Gecex imposed five antidumping actions, aimed at:
- Hairbrushes from China (duty extended);
- Titanium-dioxide pigments from China (new duty applied);
- Padlocks from China (measure extended);
- Ethanolamines (monoethanolamine and triethanolamine) from Germany and the U.S. (measure extended); and
- Nylon yarn from Yiwu Huading Nylon Co. (China), subject to preliminary duties.
These measures follow investigations confirming price undercutting in Brazil’s domestic market.
Temporary protection: steel, paper, and plastics
The committee also approved five temporary tariff increases under the Conjunctural Trade Imbalance (DCC) mechanism:
- Coated paperboard (requested by IBÁ – Brazilian Tree Industry) → tariff raised from 12.6% to 16%;
- Galvanized steel mesh (Sicetel – steel producers) → 12.6% to 25%;
- PVC films and flooring materials (Abrapla – plastics industry) → 16% to 20%;
- Aluminum structures and panels → 14.4% to 20%.
These adjustments are meant to shield domestic manufacturing from import surges and remain in force for up to 12 months.
Ex-tariff renewals and revocations
Gecex also renewed or created 484 “Ex-tarifários” for capital goods (BK) and 116 for IT and telecom equipment (BIT) — temporary exemptions that reduce import duties on industrial machinery not produced in Brazil. Five outdated BK and one BIT exemptions were revoked. The updates will be consolidated in Gecex Resolutions No. 780 and 781 (2025).