Brazil was not the only country targeted for political reasons. India faces a comparable rate for buying Russian oil. Mr Trump warned Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister, that recognising a Palestinian state would make trade negotiations “very hard”.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva spoke by phone on Thursday, their offices said, discussing a broad range of topics that included tariffs imposed by the United States on goods from both countries.

Brazil has requested consultations at the World Trade Organization over tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on the South American nation.