BRASILIA, May 28 (Reuters) - Brazil's lower house of

Congress approved on Tuesday the main text of a bill that would

enact a new 20% import tax on international online purchases

under $50, significantly down from a higher tax rate that was

originally proposed.

The bill must still be voted on by the Senate.

The new import tax rate for purchases that cost $50 or less

was set on Tuesday following negotiations between lawmakers and

the administration of leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da

Silva, which had previously expressed its opposition to the

unpopular tax proposal.

An earlier version of the bill sought to raise the

online orders tax to 60%.

Global online retailers including Alibaba's ( BABA )

AliExpress and Shein have a huge presence in the Brazilian

marketplace.

While Lula's government has sought to balance public

spending with more tax revenue, the president said last week

that he was inclined to veto the new tax if Congress approved

it.

If he were to make good on that threat, lawmakers could

overturn a Lula veto with a simple majority vote.

Last year, Lula's administration tried to implement a

version of the online sales tax, which is supported by local

retailers amid growing presence of Asian e-commerce giants in

Brazil, but at the time he gave up after a strong backlash from

online shoppers.

Lower house lawmakers opted to attach the 20% tax proposal

to a bill that also includes sustainability tax incentives for

automakers.