Billions in Brazil jets, buses for Iran stall on US sanctions

Brazilian companies such as Embraer and Marcopolo are scrambling to close multi billion-dollar deals to sell planes and buses to Iran, seeking to navigate remaining US financial sanctions, senior officials have said. The plane-maker is in advanced negotiations to sell at least 20 E195 jets with a total list price of more than $1b, while the bus manufacturer is in talks to supply part of the 27,000 units Tehran is seeking, according to Mahdi Rounagh, a senior official at Iran’s Foreign Ministry and until recently deputy ambassador in Brasilia. The problem is that Brazilian banks are reluctant to deal with Iran for fear of penalties by the US, even after Washington lifted restrictions on non-US banks. Their concern is that their US assets and subsidiaries could classify them as US banks, according to two senior bank executives in Brasilia. Business and government officials say Brazil must try harder to find alternatives, such as using smaller European banks that don’t operate in the US. "We have been in contact with several banks to explain that it is possible to find solutions that would benefit not only Brazilian companies but the banks themselves," said Rodrigo de Azeredo Santos, Brazil’s top diplomat for trade. He didn’t name the banks because the discussions are not public. "We are talking about big contracts."<br/>