Bolsonaro changes freight calculation for truck drivers after diesel increase

President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) edited a provisional measure this Tuesday (17) with a change in the calculation of the charge in the freight schedule, in a nod to truck drivers, who are part of his electoral base.

The measure deals with the extraordinary revision of the Freight Table for Road Cargo Transport, and reduces from 10% to 5% the fluctuation in the price of diesel that determines the revision of the table.

“With this, it is intended to give sustainability to the road freight transport sector, and, in particular, the self-employed truck driver, in order to provide a fair remuneration compatible with the costs of the activity”, says a note from Palácio do Planalto.

The legislation already determines that the National Land Transport Agency (ANTT) reviews the freight table every six months. It also provides for an extraordinary review whenever the variation in the price of diesel on the domestic market exceeds 10% in relation to the price shown in the calculation sheet.

According to the text released by Planalto, the fuel widely used by truck drivers has increased by 52% in the last 12 months.

The government points out that the price of diesel follows the international price of oil, which has been impacted by the war in Ukraine. “The imbalances that this conflict has caused in the geopolitical conformations that determine the availability and prices of oil, added to the exchange rate variation, has impacted the price of diesel oil in the domestic market, which has accumulated a 52% increase in the last 12 months”.

The provisional measure is effective immediately, but must be approved by Congress within six months. Otherwise, it loses its validity.

Last week, Petrobras announced an 8.87% increase in the average price of diesel at refineries. The rise was expected by the market, given the escalation of international prices in recent weeks, but that did not stop Bolsonaro’s irritation.

The state-owned company is already under its third president, since the beginning of the government. The chief executive has publicly criticized the state-owned company’s pricing policy and demanded that it act with a “social purpose”.

To supporters in the playpen at Palácio da Alvorada, on Monday, he criticized Petrobras’ statute and said there was more to happen at the company. Such as Sheet showed, President José Mauro Coelho entered Bolsonaro’s crosshairs.

The government is still studying other measures to try to contain the increase in fuel prices this election year.

Although they consider not having a “silver bullet” with immediate effect, the list of possibilities includes a cut in the biodiesel import tax and a change in the composition of the fuel sold at the pump. Some can be adopted by the Executive itself, without the need for congressional approval.