Bolsonaro wants to sulk Bic pens, because it's "a French brand"

A tiny step further in the diplomatic crisis. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is fighting with France over fires in the Amazon, said Friday (August 30th) that he would stop using Bic pens. Until now, he signed the official documents with these cheap pens, often brandished in front of the cameras as a symbol of the modesty of his presidential lifestyle. "Pen (from the Brazilian brand) Compactor, instead of Bic, will do the trick ", he told reporters in Brasilia and several times on Facebook, according to the newspaper O Globo (in Portuguese).

A spokesman for the presidency, to which AFP asked if the presidential statements were to be taken seriously or if it was a joke, answered not to wish "comment on this case". Some 95% of the pens sold in Brazil by Bic are manufactured in Manaus, in the state of Amazonas, one of the nine states to house the Amazon rainforest in Brazil, said a press officer of the firm to the AFP. The group employs a thousand people in its factories in Manaus and Rio de Janeiro.

Bic did not wish to comment on the statements of Jair Bolsonaro but said "Flattered" to be recognized as being "a democratic brand".