AsianFin -- Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Wednesday signed an executive order granting tax exemptions to boost the country’s data center industry, while also enacting legislation to regulate digital competition.

Under the initiative, companies investing in data centers will be exempt from key federal taxes — including PIS, Cofins, IPI, and import duties — on IT-related capital expenditures such as servers and cooling systems, the government said.

The measure is designed to strengthen Brazil’s digital infrastructure and attract global technology firms to set up operations in the country, as demand for cloud services and AI computing rises sharply worldwide.

In parallel, Lula also signed a bill regulating digital competition, aiming to create a more level playing field among major online platforms, protect consumers, and encourage innovation across the local tech sector.