Brazil not to reduce fuel prices despite truckers' protests

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of reducing diesel fuel prices, although truck drivers protested the rise of fuel prices across the country.

"The government cannot reduce diesel prices," she said.

It was the first presidential comment on the matter after seven days of protests which resulted in over a hundred blocks on federal highways in nine states. On Tuesday, protesters blocked the access to Brazil's largest port in Santos, Sao Paulo state.

Truck drivers are complaining about high diesel prices and low prices of freight operations. In a move to attract attention from the government, they started to block federal highways last week.

According to the Federal Highway Police, the number of blocked points on federal highways across the country jumped from 69 on Tuesday morning to 124 in the early evening.

A local court ruled that the truck drivers stop blocking three federal highways, but normal operations have yet to be fully resumed.

In Minas Gerais state, a Fiat auto factory had to suspend production because its auto parts did not arrive due to the highway blocks.

Representatives of truckers and freight companies will meet later Wednesday in Brasilia to negotiate a solution to the impasse.

Presidential Chief Administrative Aide Miguel Rossetto, who is in charge of the negotiations, said the government will encourage direct talks between freight companies and truckers in order to end the blockages, but reiterated that reducing diesel prices is impossible. Endi