We had excellent chemistry for 39 seconds, says the American president.
Relations between Brazil and the US have been icy since Trump introduced 50-percent tariffs on Brazilian goods earlier this year.
On Tuesday, the world leaders met for the first time, in the UN building's catacombs, when Lula was on his way down from the podium in the General Assembly and Trump was on his way up.
I saw him, he saw me and we hugged each other. We actually agreed to meet next week, says Trump.
The meeting is described as brief but friendly.
He seemed to be a nice guy. I liked him and I only do business with people I like.
Lula has not commented on the meeting.
The tariffs against Brazil were introduced partly in response to the "witch hunt" that Trump believed the former president - and Trump friend - Jair Bolsonaro was subjected to. Bolsonaro was recently sentenced to 27 years in prison for a coup attempt.
Lula said as recently as last week that he had never met Trump and that their relationship was non-existent.
