Recap: Brazil's Tariff Concerns, Investment Progress Outlined at Consular Conversations Luncheon

Consular Conversations: Brazil

November 13, 2025
The Commerce Club

A trained lawyer from Sao Paulo, ascending to the heights of Brazilian diplomacy was not on Ambassador Pompeu Andreucci Neto‘s career roadmap.

But as he got established professionally, a friend suggested (dared?) the pair take the foreign-service exam together, teasing a life of intrigue and travel.

In the end, Mr. Neto got the nod, while his friend failed to advance to the next stage, and the rest is (a very illustrious) history.

“Till today, we are great friends, and we joke that he was the lucky one, because he’s very much wealthier, and maybe happier,” joked the Brazilian consul general in Atlanta, who took up his position here last year after two straight ambassadorial postings in Spain and Ecuador.

Mr. Neto joined Global Atlanta Nov. 12 for an in-depth Consular Conversation interview, sponsored and presented by Miller & Martin PLLC, exploring Brazil’s foreign policy, its relationship with the United States, and the role of the consulate in supporting communities and fostering bilateral cooperation.

The consul general highlighted the highly educated and professional Brazilian community in his five-state region and its dual mission of providing essential services—such as passports, documentation, and organizing Brazil’s 2026 presidential voting abroad—while strengthening cultural ties and supporting vulnerable residents.

A major theme of the discussion was trade, investment, and current U.S. tariffs on Brazilian goods. The consul general provided historical context for American tariff policy, explained the economic impact on Brazil, and emphasized Brazil’s pragmatic diplomatic approach, including diversifying exports and engaging U.S. officials to ease tensions. The conversation also covered Brazil’s global role in multilateral organizations, its environmental responsibilities—particularly regarding the Amazon—and preparations for the 2026 World Cup. Mr. Neto underscored the resilience of Brazilian democracy and the growing challenges posed by technology and misinformation.

Editor’s note: Summary produced with input from ChatGPT.

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Speakers

MODERATOR:

Trevor Williams,
Managing Editor, Global Atlanta

Add the panelist bio

Ambassador Pompeu Andreucci Neto, Consul General of Brazil in Atlanta

Pompeu Andreucci Neto is currently the Consul General of Brazil in Atlanta. A Brazilian career Diplomat, Ambassador Andreucci Neto served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Brazil to Ecuador between 2022 and 2024 and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Brazil to Spain and Andorra between 2018 and 2022. Between 2016 and 2018, Mr. Andreucci Neto served as Chief of Protocol to the President of Brazil. Starting 2011 until 2016, he served as Chief Diplomatic Advisor to the Vice President of Brazil. From 2006 through 2011, Mr. Andreucci Neto worked as Minister- Counselor at the Embassy of Brazil in Washington, D.C., where he led the Economic Affairs, Trade and Financial Policies Sector. From 2003 to 2006, he was Secretary of International Affairs at the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade of Brazil. Between 2001 and 2003, Mr. Andreucci Neto served as Advisor to the Under-Secretary General for Integration, Economics and Foreign Trade at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil. His previous diplomatic postings include Washington, D.C.; Montevideo; New York; Paris and Santiago. Mr. Andreucci Neto holds a Degree in Law from the University of Sao Paulo School of Law, where he graduated “Summa Cum Laude”. Subsequently, he attended the Centre d’Économie (CES) at Université de Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. Mr. Andreucci Neto also holds a Degree in Diplomacy from Instituto Rio-Branco, the Brazilian Academy of Diplomacy, and a Master’s Degree in International Public Policies from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Mr. Andreucci Neto has published several articles and academic papers on questions relating to
International Law and Public Policies and is fluent in Portuguese, French, Spanish and English. He joined the Brazilian Foreign Service in 1990.

“I worked with the Secretary of Commerce in Brazil, and we started noticing a decline in Brazilian exports to the United States, but not so much because we were not selling Brazilian products to the United States, but because the companies were coming to produce those Brazilian products here, or Brazilian capital buying American companies here. That’s very, very common also.”

-On why Brazil has a trade deficit with the U.S. and factors driving Brazilian investment in the Southeast U.S.

While President Trump’s tariff ire has generally been reserved for countries with which the U.S. has had large and sustained trade deficits, the targeting of Brazil was motivated explicitly by politics.

Of course, those tariffs affected us very much. Just to give you an idea … between August and October, our exports to the United States dropped by 38 percent. It’s a huge number, and we are very concerned.
Ambassador Pompeu Andreucci Neto, Consul General of Brazil in Atlanta

Read Global Atlanta’s full story on the event below, which includes Mr. Neto’s reflections on diplomacy as “the art of adaption” and the long history of American tariff policy: