Negotiators from the European Union and the United States are meeting in Washington this week for the latest round of negotiations on an economic pact known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
Scores of officials from both sides of the Atlantic are coming together for the third time since July to try to identify further ways of harmonising trade policy between the world’s largest economies, with a view to making it easier to do business with each other.
Both parties appear keen on reducing trade barriers such as tariffs; aligning product standards and regulations; and opening up both markets to greater levels of interaction in the areas of services, investment and public procurement.
Leaders are conscious, however, that previous efforts to forge such policies have failed to deliver. Should a comprehensive deal be reached, which is far from certain and likely to take years, it would be expected to provide a shot in the arm for the EU and US economies without further straining tight public purses.
The progress of the talks to date has read more like the script of a convoluted espionage film than that of a trade negotiation. There have been allegations of spying against the US, external fears over the inclusion of a behind closed doors dispute settlement mechanism, concern that GMO and hormone laden foods may be unleashed in Europe, and, of course, the promise of significant riches at the end.
Read more: EU-US trade talks still have some distance to travel - Economic News | Ireland & World Economy Headlines |The Irish Times - Wed, Dec 18, 2013
Scores of officials from both sides of the Atlantic are coming together for the third time since July to try to identify further ways of harmonising trade policy between the world’s largest economies, with a view to making it easier to do business with each other.
Both parties appear keen on reducing trade barriers such as tariffs; aligning product standards and regulations; and opening up both markets to greater levels of interaction in the areas of services, investment and public procurement.
Leaders are conscious, however, that previous efforts to forge such policies have failed to deliver. Should a comprehensive deal be reached, which is far from certain and likely to take years, it would be expected to provide a shot in the arm for the EU and US economies without further straining tight public purses.
The progress of the talks to date has read more like the script of a convoluted espionage film than that of a trade negotiation. There have been allegations of spying against the US, external fears over the inclusion of a behind closed doors dispute settlement mechanism, concern that GMO and hormone laden foods may be unleashed in Europe, and, of course, the promise of significant riches at the end.
Read more: EU-US trade talks still have some distance to travel - Economic News | Ireland & World Economy Headlines |The Irish Times - Wed, Dec 18, 2013
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