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After a first testing session in July, negotiators are expected on 7-11 October to delve into complicated dossiers to pave the way towards a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) which could over time boost EU GDP by 0.5% annually and help create approximately 400,000.

The second round agenda is packed, according to sources. Negotiators are supposed to move simultaneously on all fronts:  elimination of tariffs, regulatory cooperation and rule-making, and last but not least, rewriting the global trade rulebook after the collapse of the Doha round, taking into account the complexity of the modern supply chains and the role of services and the internet economy.

Leading to the October negotiating session, over 20 different technical groups are meeting this week to prepare the ground for discussion, sources said. Negotiators would then start to work on an horizontal framework. Sector-specific negotiations would probably take place later in the year or early next year, said sources.

Featuring high on the bilateral talks is regulatory cooperation. Studies suggest that between two-thirds of the gains from a future agreement would come from cutting red tapes and four-fifths from having more coordination between regulators.

Source: Euractiv