Brazil Announces Zero Federal Gasoline Taxes and Larger Fuel Subsidies

Brazil’s government announced a 30-day fuel package on October 9, reducing federal gasoline taxes to zero and increasing relief from R$0.63 to R$0.89 per litre. It renewed R$0.19-per-litre tax relief for hydrated ethanol and raised its producer subsidy from R$0.25 to R$0.43 per litre. Road-diesel imports receive an additional R$1.40-per-litre subsidy alongside existing R$2.12 support; officials estimated the package would cost R$5.2 billion and said additional petroleum revenue would offset it. A separate provisional measure published October 9 opened R$7.52 billion in extraordinary credit for fuel subsidies, including R$6.17 billion for road diesel and R$1.35 billion for other petroleum-derived fuels.