Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced that Vietnam may purchase up to 50 aircraft from Embraer, a Brazilian planemaker, and that another Brazilian company could invest $100 million in a meat-processing facility in Vietnam. This comes as Lula prepares to conclude his meetings with President Luong Cuong.
Last week, Brazilian meatpacker JBS was considering establishing its first plant in Asia, although the company did not immediately respond to Lula's comments, and it remains unclear whether the $100 million investment is connected to those plans.
Additionally, a Brazilian official confirmed that Embraer is in discussions regarding the potential sale of 10 E190 narrow-body jets to Vietnam Airlines. Lula noted that Vietnam Airlines is "positively assessing Embraer's offer" for regional jets.
Embraer has not commented on Lula's statements.
Lula also expressed a willingness to negotiate with U.S. President Trump regarding tariffs he plans to implement on Brazil starting Wednesday. Trump previously imposed levies on Brazilian steel in early March.
In a more conciliatory tone than earlier that week in Japan, where he engaged with the World Trade Organization over the steel tariff, Lula mentioned the possibility of raising tariffs on American imports into Brazil.
"Before engaging in a fight about reciprocity or a dispute at the WTO, we want to use all the words in our dictionary to promote free trade with the U.S.," he stated to reporters in Hanoi.