After U.S. Tariffs, Brazil Kept a 2025 Surplus as Trade Shifted

Brazil ended 2025 with a trade surplus despite a U.S. tariff surge that hit sales into America. The year still produced record exports, but the mix changed fast.

Key Points

• Brazil recorded a $68.29 billion trade surplus in 2025 as exports hit a record $348.7 billion.
• Shipments to the United States fell 6.6%, while imports from the U.S. rose 11.3%.
• China and booming farm exports helped offset weaker commodity values and U.S. demand.

Exports rose 3.5% from 2024 to $348.7 billion. Imports rose 6.7% to $280.4 billion. That left a $68.29 billion trade surplus, down 7.9% year on year. Total goods trade reached $629.06 billion, up 4.9%, according to the development and trade ministry.

December was strong. Exports jumped 24.7% from a year earlier to about $31.0 billion, while imports rose 5.7% to $21.4 billion. The monthly surplus was $9.63 billion, up 107.8%.

The U.S. lane weakened. Exports to the United States fell 6.6% in 2025 to $37.72 billion, and were down 7.7% in December. The sharpest monthly drop came in October, when exports to the U.S. fell 35.4%.

Imports from the United States climbed 11.3% to $45.25 billion, though December imports slipped 1.5% to $3.20 billion. Politics shaped the backdrop. The tariff package associated with President Donald Trump reached 50% on many products.

It was later eased for many Brazilian agricultural imports, with changes applied retroactively to November 13. Even after the rollback, about 22% of Brazil’s exports to the U.S. remained affected.

The U.S. Senate voted 52–48 on October 28 to end the emergency basis for the tariffs, but the move still faced procedural and veto hurdles.

Brazilian officials said 2025 exports beat the previous record by roughly $9 billion. Vice President Geraldo Alckmin credited “new markets” and industrial programs, and said export volume rose 5.7% versus 2.4% for global trade.

China took the strain. Exports to China rose about 6% to roughly $100 billion, near 30% of Brazil’s total. Agriculture also surged, with beef export sales up 42.5% and coffee up 31.1%, helping offset weaker values for crude oil and iron ore as prices cooled.

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