TTIP still faces large hurdles, according to negotiators

EU and US negotiators said yesterday that they still needed to overcome large differences for a transatlantic free trade deal to be sealed this year, and factor in the impending exit from the EU of the UK, one of the US’s biggest export markets.

The two sides are trying to agree on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), which supporters say could boost each economy by some $100bn at a time when growth in China and emerging markets is slowing.

Chief EU negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero and US counterpart Dan Mullaney told a news conference after a 14th round of talks that both sides were committed to sealing a deal before US President Barack Obama leaves office at the turn of the year.