Mercosur, four-nation European trade bloc seal sweeping trade deal
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Ford recalls 133,000 Lincoln Aviators over risk of detaching parts
Ford is recalling 132,914 Aviator SUVs in the United States because parts, including rear door window bars, may detach due to insufficient adhesive retention. The recall covers Lincoln Aviator models between 2020 and 2025. The report estimates that about 3.2% of the recalled vehicles may have the defect.
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June 24 (Reuters) – Ford (F.N) , opens new tab is recalling 132,914 Aviator SUVs in the United States because parts, including rear door window bars, may detach due to insufficient adhesive retention, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Tuesday.
These detaching parts could pose a hazard to other road users and increase the risk of crashes, according to the NHTSA report.
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The recall covers Lincoln Aviator models between 2020 and 2025. The report estimates that about 3.2% of the recalled vehicles may have the defect.
Dealers will repair or replace the parts free of charge.
Reporting by Devika Nair and Aishwarya Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid
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Equifax’s quarterly profit lifted by better-than-expected mortgage business
Credit bureau Equifax (EFX.N) beat Wall Street expectations for first-quarter profit on Tuesday. The company also kept its annual forecast unchanged despite economic uncertainties, sending its shares up 7.7% before the bell. Wall Street had anticipated mortgage inquiries to be a source of positive surprise in the first quarter, given the slight dip in the 30-year mortgage rate. Equifax’s shares have fallen 15.5% so far this year, as of last close, compared with the benchmark S&P 500 index’s 12.3% fall.
April 22 (Reuters) – Credit bureau Equifax (EFX.N) , opens new tab beat Wall Street expectations for first-quarter profit on Tuesday, buoyed by a smaller-than-expected drop in inquiries for mortgage credit reports.
The company also kept its annual forecast unchanged despite economic uncertainties, sending its shares up 7.7% before the bell.
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Wall Street had anticipated mortgage inquiries to be a source of positive surprise in the first quarter, given the slight dip in the 30-year mortgage rate — the interest rate for the most popular U.S. home loan — during February and March.
U.S. mortgage inquiries fell 9% in the quarter from a year earlier, better than Equifax’s expectation of a 13% decline.
CEO Mark Begor said Equifax was maintaining its full-year 2025 outlook despite the strong first-quarter results, due to “significant uncertainty in the global macroeconomic environment and direction of U.S. inflation and interest rates.”
Uncertainty around U.S. trade policy may lead financial institutions to tighten consumer lending standards.
This would result in less business for credit bureaus like Equifax, which sell credit reports and data analytics to consumer and mortgage lenders.
The Atlanta, Georgia-based company still forecasts annual revenue between $5.91 billion and $6.03 billion; adjusted profit per share is expected to be between $7.25 and $7.65.
On an adjusted basis, Equifax earned $1.53 per share in the first quarter, beating analysts’ expectation of $1.40 per share, according to estimates compiled by LSEG.
The company also unveiled a $3 billion buyback program that it expects to complete over about four years.
Equifax’s shares have fallen 15.5% so far this year, as of last close, compared with the benchmark S&P 500 index’s (.SPX) , opens new tab 12.3% fall.
Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed
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US Treasury Secretary says situation with China is unsustainable, source says
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday said that the tariff standoff with China is unsustainable and that he expects the situation to de-escalate. He also added that negotiations haven’t started but that a deal is possible.
Item 1 of 5 A China Shipping container is seen at the port of Oakland, as trade tensions escalate over U.S. tariffs with China, in Oakland, California, U.S., April 10, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria
NEW YORK, April 22 (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday said that the tariff standoff with China is unsustainable and that he expects the situation to de-escalate, a source familiar said.
Bloomberg first reported this.
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He also added that negotiations haven’t started but that a deal is possible, the source added.
Bessent said this at a closed door event hosted by JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) , opens new tab in Washington.
Reporting by Nupur Anand in New York, Editing by Franklin Paul
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Hedge funds sell energy stocks as oil slumps, says Goldman Sachs
Hedge funds sold energy stocks last week at the fastest pace since September 2024. Last week’s selling in the sector was the second largest in the last decade. Oil prices tumbled over $10 last week following a cease-fire between Israel and Iran. In Europe, hedge funds added short positions and fled long bets, said Goldman Sachs (GS.N) Goldman Sachs: Hedge fund gross leverage, a gauge of how many positions hedge funds have on, remains at a five-year high.
LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) – Hedge funds sold energy stocks last week at the fastest pace since September 2024 and at the second-quickest clip in the last 10 years, as oil prices fell on easing Middle East tensions, a Goldman Sachs (GS.N) , opens new tab note seen by Reuters on Monday showed.
Crude prices tumbled over $10 last week following a cease-fire between Israel and Iran. Oil prices wobbled on Friday on reports of increased supply from oil producing group OPEC+ and remain well below the recent peak of around $81.
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Hedge funds, starting June 23, sold the stocks of energy-related companies across every major region, the Goldman note said.
Last week’s selling in the sector was the biggest in almost a year and the second largest in the last decade, said the Goldman note, sent to clients on Friday.
Shares of oil, gas and consumable oil companies as well as energy equipment and services firms were sold.
Hedge fund selling focused on every region but primarily on North America and Europe, said the note. In Europe, hedge funds added short positions and fled long bets, said Goldman.
A short position expects asset prices to fall, while a long position expects it to rise.
While many increased short bets against energy companies, speculators’ total combined positions remained proportionately long on global energy stocks, data from the note showed.
Hedge fund gross leverage, a gauge of how many positions hedge funds have on, remains at a five-year high, said Goldman Sachs.
Last week saw the largest stock buying in five weeks, the note added, with hedge funds buying company shares in every global region, the bank said.
Stock sectors most bought included financial, tech and industrial companies, it said.
Reporting by Nell Mackenzie; Editing by Dhara Ranasinghe and Joe Bavier
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Mercosur, four-nation European trade bloc seal sweeping trade deal
The deal will create a free-trade area with almost 300 million people and a combined GDP of more than $4.3 trillion. The deal has largely been overshadowed by a stalled trade pact between Mercosur and the larger European Union. It comes as the world’s trade balance shifts on uncertainty caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.Mercosur member states also agreed to expand the number of tariff-free imports coming from within the bloc. The agreement still requires parliamentary approval and a legal review from members of both blocs. It is hoped the deal will be finalized in the second half of the year, when Brazil takes over the rotating MercosUR presidency, along with the pending deal with the EU. It will cover nearly all shipments between the countries.
Summary
Companies Agreement could be finalized in second half of 2025
Deal to create a free trade area of 300 million people
Work continues for long-delayed Mercosur-EU trade deal
Mercosur agrees to add tariff exemptions, in nod to US
BUENOS AIRES/BRASILIA, July 2 (Reuters) – South America’s Mercosur trade bloc and a group of four small European nations on Wednesday wrapped up talks on a sweeping free-trade agreement a decade in the making that will cover nearly all shipments between the countries.
The deal, which has largely been overshadowed by a stalled trade pact between Mercosur and the larger European Union, comes as the world’s trade balance shifts on uncertainty caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs
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Mercosur and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), comprised of Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, will benefit “from improved market access for more than 97% of their exports,” they said in a joint statement.
The deal, which still requires parliamentary approval and a legal review from members of both blocs, will create a free-trade area with almost 300 million people and a combined GDP of more than $4.3 trillion, the groups said.
Exploratory talks between EFTA and Mercosur, which includes Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay while Bolivia is in the process of becoming a full member, kicked off in 2015.
Reuters reported last year, citing sources, that an agreement with EFTA was among the most likely to be signed by Mercosur this year.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira said that his government was hopeful the deal would be finalized in the second half of the year, when Brazil takes over the rotating Mercosur presidency, along with the pending deal between Mercosur and the EU.
MERCOSUR TARIFF, ENERGY BENEFITS
The Mercosur-EFTA agreement was firmed up in Buenos Aires as part of a summit led by the South American coalition.
Mercosur member states on Wednesday also agreed to expand the number of tariff-free imports coming from within the bloc.
Argentina had sought more exemptions to facilitate a possible trade deal with the United States, though libertarian President Javier Milei has also pushed for a potential agreement outside of Mercosur.
Argentina and Paraguay separately signed an agreement to weigh natural gas exports out of Argentina’s vast shale deposit, Vaca Muerta, to Paraguay and Brazil.
Argentina plans to turn the area into a key global energy-producing region that would help bring in foreign currency needed to prop up the economy, though those plans could be at risk due to a U.S. court ruling this week ordering the state hand over its majority stake in energy firm YPF (YPFDm.BA) , opens new tab
Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu in Brasilia and Lucila Sigal in Buenos Aires; Additional reporting by Lucinda Elliott in Montevideo, Andre Romani, Isabel Teles, Madeline Chambers, Walter Bianchi, Louise Rasmussen; Editing by Kylie Madry, Sarah Morland, Marguerita Choy and Jamie Freed
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