Economists have been expressing alarm over U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to hit Brazil with a 50% tariff on Aug. 1 — the largest country-specific levy out of the 22 that Trump has rolled out this week.

The president signaled he would seek to use the threat of steep levies to reorient trade and protect his political allies.

Brazil believes it can withstand Trump’s 50 percent tariff, and aides to Lula say he is unlikely to shrink from a confrontation with the White House.

The filmmaker also discusses how he helped Quentin Tarantino with 'Reservoir Dogs,' why his dark 2005 fantasy 'Tideland' "seems to disturb a lot of people" and his role as honorary president of the Umbria Film Festival.

President Trump is hosting 5 African leaders in Washington this week — a mini summit that's raising eyebrows over who was invited, what's on the table, and what it signals about U.S. rivalry with China and BRICS in Africa.