EU and Mercosur Seal Trade Pact as Ratification Phase Begins

Overview

• The agreement establishes a free‑trade area spanning roughly 720 million people with a combined GDP above US$22 trillion.
• Tariffs will be phased out on more than 90% of bilateral trade, including the EU eliminating duties on 95% of Mercosur goods in up to 12 years and Mercosur zeroing 91% of EU goods in up to 15 years.
• Binding environmental provisions bar benefits for products tied to illegal deforestation and allow suspension if Paris Agreement commitments are violated.
• The text now goes to the European Parliament and national legislatures, with the trade instrument eligible for provisional application and a broader partnership requiring full national ratifications.
• Resistance from European agricultural sectors has fueled protests in France, Poland, Ireland and Belgium, and moves in the European Parliament for legal review could complicate the timetable.