Thousands protest as EU leaders clash over pact farmers fear will flood Europe with cheaper South American goods.

Business associations in Germany, Europe's largest economy, voiced disappointment and frustration over the European Union's postponed signing of a free trade deal with South American bloc Mercosur until January.

Hundreds of tractors clog the streets of Brussels as European farmers protest against EU plans for a trade deal with South American bloc Mercosur. The agreement, if signed, would create the world's largest free-trade area,

Farmers in tractors blocked roads, threw potatoes and eggs, and set off fireworks in Brussels on Wednesday outside a European Union leaders’ summit, prompting police to respond with tear gas and water cannons as protesters rallied against a major free-trade deal with South American nations.

Brussels erupted in chaos as thousands of European farmers took to the streets on 17 December to protest the EU-Mercosur trade deal. Tractors blocked roads, and demonstrators surrounded EU buildings,