Ford (F) -) shares moved higher in early Thursday trading after the carmaker reached a tentative labor agreement with the United Autoworkers Union just hours ahead of its third quarter earnings report slated for after the closing bell.
Ford said the deal will see UAW members receive a 25% pay increase over the next four and a half years, including an initial boost of around 11%, with a further 30% increase in cost-of-living adjustment payments.
If ratified, the deal will be the first between a Big Three automaker and the UAW since president Shawn Fain initiated strike action last month in a move that eventually grew to 45,000 workers across several states and major production facilities around the country.
General Motors, which posted third quarter earnings earlier this week, said the strikes cost $200 million over the three months ending in September and would cost around $200 million a week in the current quarter until they were resolved. The carmaker also scrapped its full-year profit guidance.
"We are pleased to have reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract with the UAW covering our U.S. operations. Ford is proud to assemble the most vehicles in America and employ the most hourly autoworkers," Ford said in a statement. "We are focused on restarting Kentucky Truck Plant, Michigan Assembly Plant and Chicago Assembly Plant, calling 20,000 Ford employees back to work and shipping our full lineup to our customers again."
Ford shares were marked 1% higher in early Thursday trading, against a 0.4% decline for the S&P 500, to change hands at $11.64 each.
Related: Ford slides as UAW expands strike action to giant Kentucky truck plant
News of the tentative agreement now puts the focus firmly on Ford's third quarter update, as well as its near-term outlook, after the close of trading.
Analysts expect Ford to post a bottom line of 45 cents per share, up around 50% from the same period last year, on revenues of $ 41.22 billion.
Earlier this month, Ford said overall sales were up 7.7% to just over 500,000 units over the three months ending in September, including a 14.8% surge in overall EV deliveries. Sales of its flagship F-150 Lightning truck, however, were down 45.8% over the quarter.
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