The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative concluded its Section 301 investigation on Brazil on June 1 and proposed a 25% tariff on many Brazilian goods from July as punishment for "unreasonable" trade practices, g1 reported on June 2. Goods under Section 232 duties, such as steel, aluminum, copper, vehicles and auto parts, as well as beef, coffee, orange juice, fruits, nuts, oil, rare earths and aircraft parts, would be exempt from ​the new tariffs.

The USTR investigation covers areas such as electronic payment services, preferential tariffs, intellectual property protection, deforestation and ethanol market access. The new tariffs would partially replace the 50% duties on many Brazilian goods that the United States imposed in August 2025, which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down on Feb. 20. The tariff announcement came just four days after the U.S. government said it would designate Brazil's largest criminal organizations as terrorist groups. Lula met with U.S. President Donald Trump on May 7 at the White House, while presidential hopeful Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro, the eldest son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, met with Trump on May 27.