According to Brazil's ambassador in Washington, Roberto Abdenur, what Brazil and the US need to do is move forward on discussions regarding the use of ethanol.

Abdenur points out that the US now has barriers on imports of ethanol from Brazil, which must be removed. Then, says the ambassador, the two countries should work together to make ethanol a global energy product.

Abdenur says the measures would strengthen bilateral trade and reduce the impact of high petroleum prices.

Abdenur announced that an informal consultation Brazil-US group had been formed to lobby the US congress seeking to change its present protectionist position regarding Brazilian sugarcane-based ethanol.

At the moment, the US charges an importation surtax on ethanol of 2.5% per gallon, plus a US$ 0.54 tax (per gallon).

Abdenur says the US and Brazil produce 70% of the world's ethanol (the US product is mostly corn-based). He adds ethanol could alleviate fuel problems around the world.

"Ethanol needs to be seen less as a commodity and more as a solution to the planet's energy problems," declared the ambassador.

ABr

Comments (3)

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Protectionism ????????
written by Guest, June 06, 2006

Just look at how your trade barriers and tariffs are...and then compare who does the most protectionism !

Just a few examples, what is your Government taxes on Oil, personal computers, cars ?

What a shame to ask for a end to protectionism when it is around US$ 0.13 per liter for the ethanol when you have a least triple or quadruple that amount on your oil....even the one produced in Brazil !

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Bilateral trade ??????
written by Guest, June 06, 2006

Noooo....UNILATERALTrade.
Your country has already an annual trade surplus of over US$ 10 billion with the USA alone, or around 25 % of your overall trade surplus.

What do you mean then by ....Bilateral Trade ??????????

You are really crooks and believe the Americans are stupid.
They better continue charging even a higher tax on ethanol and spend it to develop their own production, just as you do on every single product you import !

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An Amerian
written by Guest, June 06, 2006

The USA has the North American Free Trade Act, which lowers trade barriers to imports from Mexico. But the USA has a high tariff which effectively keeps out Brazilian Ethonal. This is another example of how the USA government grants favorable treatment to Mexicowhile discriminating against Brazil and other countries. Since the USA lets imports in from Mexico, the USA should be fair and also allow imports of Brazilian products such as Ethonal and drop the tariff.

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