BUENOS AIRES, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- The trade agreement between the South American bloc Mercosur and the European Union (EU) will be signed on Jan. 17 in Paraguay, Argentine Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno said Friday.

Quirno welcomed the progress in a post on X, calling it "more trade, more investment and more jobs," and said the European Council had authorized the signing of the Mercosur-EU agreement "after more than 30 years of negotiations."

"Everyone wins: Argentina and Mercosur countries will gain preferential access to the EU, the world's third-largest economy, a market of 450 million people that represents about 15 percent of global GDP," he said.

Quirno added that the EU will eliminate tariffs on 92 percent of Mercosur exports and grant preferential access to another 7.5 percent, benefiting 99 percent of Mercosur agricultural exports.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen endorsed the trade agreement on Thursday. Member states of the EU on Friday gave provisional backing to the free trade deal in a qualified-majority vote, paving the way for the bloc to formally sign it in Paraguay. ■