High expectations for 14th round – EU and US must deliver now on TTIP

Brussels, 11 July 2016 – The 14th round of negotiations for a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement between the EU and the US will take place this week in Brussels. Ahead of this critical round, the Business Alliance for TTIP stresses to the EU and the US that the time must be now to make critical progress towards the conclusion of a comprehensive TTIP deal that could boost growth, competitiveness and jobs on both sides of the Atlantic. 

The upcoming round has the potential to be a turning point in the negotiations, against the backdrop of efforts to conclude a deal in 2016. Expectations from the business community are high that it will yield results that will make it possible to reach a common understanding on all sensitive areas before the end of the year. However, a constructive and creative approach is necessary to breach the current gaps in positions on services, public procurement, agriculture, regulatory cooperation at the horizontal and sectoral levels, and on geographical indications. 

Businesses of all sizes, as well as workers, consumers, and citizens in both the EU and the US could benefit from an agreement that improves trade and investment between the two world’s largest markets and sets global standards. With time running out before the end of the Obama administration, now is the time to make the substantive progress necessary to move towards completion.