Good morning! This week, we talk about the potential negative effects of the EU-Mercosur trade deal on local industries. Soybeans’ weight in Brazil’s growth. And the biome suffering more than the Amazon.
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Who stands to lose from the EU-Mercosur deal?
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva travels to Brussels on Saturday to attend a summit between the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC). But one of his key agenda points has to do with another bloc of which Brazil is a member: Mercosur.
- Lula has repeatedly said that getting the EU-Mercosur free trade agreement over the hump is a major priority for him.
State of play. The EU-Mercosur deal has been stalled since 2019 when the two sides reached an agreement in principle. Powerful agricultural lobbies in countries such as France have led the Europeans to try to impose stricter environmental commitments on Mercosur countries.
- During a Mercosur summit last week, Lula called the new demands “unacceptable.”
- He also says it is “inadmissible”...