Due to inflation, government cuts import tax on 11 products

In an attempt to alleviate inflationary pressure on food, the federal government announced, this Wednesday (11), the reduction of the import tax on 11 products. The new rates take effect this Thursday (12) and are valid until December 31.

The idea is that the tax reduction makes the purchase of these products from abroad cheaper, resulting in a drop in the price of the product on the supermarket shelf.

According to the Undersecretary of Intelligence and Foreign Trade Statistics of the Foreign Trade Secretariat, Herlon Alves Brandão, the measure is expected to have an impact of up to R$ 700 million in federal tax revenue. However, the value of the amount will depend on the volume of imports, the countries of origin of the products and the exchange rate.

Check out the 11 products that will have reduced import tax:

• Frozen Bonivo Boneless Meats: from 10.8% to 0%
• Frozen chicken pieces and offal: from 9% to 0%
• Wheat flour: from 10.8% to 0%
• Wheat and wheat-rye blends: from 9% to 0%
• Cookies and cookies: from 16.2% to 0%
• Other bakery, pastry and biscuit industry products: from 16.2% to 0%
• Corn in grains: from 7.2% to 0%
• Sulfuric acid: from 3.6% to 0%
• Technical mancozeb (fungicide): from 12.6% to 4%
• Wire rod of iron or non-alloy steel, toothed, ribbed, grooved or embossed: from 10.8% to 4%
• Iron or non-alloy steel bars, hot, toothed, ribbed, grooved or embossed: from 10.8% to 4%

The executive secretary of the Chamber of Foreign Trade (Camex), Ana Paula Repezza, explained that, in addition to food and products related to agricultural production, such as mancozeb and sulfuric acid, two categories of steel rebar (CA50 and CA60 ).

“Obviously, this will have an impact on inflation, but not as directly, through construction prices. This is a request made by representatives of the sector and which had already been technically analyzed at the Ministry for 8 months. We reduced it from 10.8% to 4%, which is the international average. The intention is to generate greater competition and positively impact the civil construction sector, which generates a lot of employment”, he added.

The reduction of the import tax for these products is via the Mercosur’s List of Exceptions to the Common External Tariff (LETEC) and, for that, it was necessary to remove other products from the list, such as mozzarella cheese and the drug clonazepam.

“The products that were withdrawn meet at least one of two criteria: they are products for which there was a tariff increase, via Letec, and therefore, by withdrawing them from Letec, we are reducing import tax; Or, the second criterion, the product that was occupying a vacancy at Letec but for which there was no registered import. It would be an inefficient, ineffective use of the vacancy”, explained Repezza.

In March, Camex had already zeroed the rates for ethanol and six types of food – ground coffee, margarine, cheese, pasta, sugar and soy oil. At the time, the Ministry of Economy argued that the initiative was part of an effort to contain high inflation.

In an attempt to mitigate pressures on prices, the government also adopted other measures in the area. In November, when implementing, without Mercosur support, a 10% rate cut for a group of products that encompasses 87% of the country’s tariff universe, the government said that there was urgency to deal with the rise in prices.

According to the IBGE, in the year, the IPCA accumulates a high of 4.29% and, in the last 12 months, of 12.13%, above the 11.30% observed in the 12 immediately previous months.

“We know that inflation is a global phenomenon and that we have to reduce the impact on our population”, said the executive secretary of the Ministry of Economy, Marcelo Guaranys.

According to him, the government continues to seek dialogue with Mercosur to reduce the bloc’s Common External Tariff.