Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said he would not initiate trade talks with President Trump after U.S. tariffs on Brazilian goods spiked to 50 percent on Wednesday.
"The day my intuition says Trump is ready to talk, I won't hesitate to call him," Lula told Reuters from his presidential residence.
"But today my intuition says he doesn't want to talk. And I won't humiliate myself," he added.
Lula has struggled to make headway with Trump, a close ally of his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro faces criminal charges for attempting to overthrow the current Brazilian administration, which Trump cited in his initial announcement about raising tariffs on Brazil.
Lula said he would focus on examining domestic measures to cushion the economic blow, and explore the possibility of