The South American customs pact Mercosur and the EU are “very close” to a far-reaching free trade accord, Brazil’s foreign minister said, a deal that would serve as a powerful counterpoint to growing tensions in global trade.

Alarm raised after Nissan decision to halt expansion of Sunderland car plant.

The agreement reached after years of negotiations is forecast to boost trade by more than £30 billion a year.

The European Union and Vietnam have recently finished negotiating a Trade Agreement and an Investment Protection Agreement.

The European Union (EU) and ASEAN have agreed to restart the process of establishing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between them, said Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Saturday (Jul 14).

The European Union and Japan will launch the world’s largest free trade zone early next year after their economic partnership cleared a final hurdle on Wednesday. Some 70 percent of European Parliament lawmakers backed the agreement that binds two economies accounting for about a third of global gross domestic product and signals their rejection of protectionism.

The EU has leapt ahead of the UK in the pursuit of free trade deals with Australia and New Zealand after member states gave the green light for talks to start within weeks.