ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay (AP) – The European Union and the Mercosur bloc of South American countries formally signed a long-sought landmark free trade agreement on Saturday, capping more than a quarter-century of torturous negotiations to strengthen commercial ties in the face of rising protectionism and trade tensions around the world.
NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stocks swung sharply as uncertainty about what will happen in the war with Iran increased. The S&P 500 fell as much as 1.2% Tuesday. The S&P 500 erased all its losses and ended 0.1% higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up 0.1%.
BRUSSELS (AP) – Italy on Friday gave crucial support to plans by the European Union to seal a huge free trade deal with five South American nations neighboring Venezuela that has been negotiated for over 25 years.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump over the course of a day went from threatening Iran with “annihilation” to proclaiming that the battered Islamic Republic’s leadership had presented a “workable” plan that led him to agree to a 14-day ceasefire that he expects to pave the way to end the nearly six-week-old war.
PARIS (AP) – Dozens of angry farmers demonstrated in France and Greece Thursday, halting traffic and blocking key roads with tractors to protest European Union plans to move forward with a free trade deal with five South American nations.
ROME (AP) – Pope Leo XIV said Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to destroy Iranian civilization was “truly unacceptable” and said any attacks on civilian infrastructure violate international law. Leo urged Americans and other people of good will to contact their political leaders to demand they reject war and work for peace.
SAO PAULO (AP) – Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Saturday he hopes the massive free-trade deal between South American bloc Mercosur and the European Union will be signed in January. Protests on Friday by European farmers and opposition from France and Italy threatened to quash an agreement that has been under negotiation for more than 26 years.
Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:
BRUSSELS (AP) – Italy signaled on Wednesday that it might not support a massive transatlantic free trade deal between the European Union and South American countries, casting further doubt on the agreement as European leaders gather for a summit in Brussels and farmers enraged by the trade pact descend on the capital.
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