KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Brazil’s leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva expressed confidence Monday that his country and the United States will reach a trade deal, saying that U.S. President Donald Trump had practically “guaranteed” it during their talks the day before.
The two presidents held talks on the sidelines of a regional summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital Sunday, which Lula described as a “very good meeting.”
Trump, who headed to Japan from Malaysia, also signaled on Monday that a deal is likely and that he and Lula “had a great meeting.”
“We’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Tokyo. “They’d like to do a deal.”
Earlier, Trump had said he could reduce tariffs on Brazil that he had enacted in a push for leniency for Brazil’s imprisoned former president, a Trump ally.
“I think we should be able to make some good deals for both countries,” Trump had said after meeting Lula.
According to Lula, he presented Trump with a written document outlining arguments against the U.S. tariff hikes that Lula said acknowledged the United States has the right to impose the measures, its move was based on “mistaken information.”
Trump didn’t commit to suspending the tariff hikes, nor raised any conditions during their talks, Lula said.
“He guaranteed to me that we will reach an agreement,” Lula told a news conference, speaking through an interpreter. “I am very confident that in a few days we will reach a solution.”
The Trump administration imposed a 40% tariff on Brazilian products in