The European Union and the US will begin formal talks on a free-trade agreement

[The Don]

The European Union and the US will begin formal talks on a free-trade agreement, paving the way for the biggest trade deal in history.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso made the announcement following President Barack Obama's State of the Union address.

The US said that "everything is on the table" in the talks.

A deal would bring down trading barriers between the two biggest economies in the world.

EU-US trade is worth around 455bn euros (£393bn; $613bn) a year.

"A future deal between the world's two most important economic powers will be a game-changer, giving a strong boost to our economies on both sides of the Atlantic," said Mr Barroso, speaking in Brussels.

It is not clear how long the talks will take, but similar trade deals have involved years of negotiations, and the BBC's Gavin Hewitt in Brussels says the most optimistic timeframe given by European officials is two years.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21439945

Fantastic news, whether this will actually go ahead though is another matter since this is just negotiations. If it does happen, i'll have to definitely rethink my views on the EU.

Opinions?

[GommeInc]

Depends if the benefits will be apparent for the consumer. It could just benefit the corporations/Governments. Just because it's free trade doesn't mean it'll be good for the poor sods who buy the products that are imported or exported.

[The Don]

Depends if the benefits will be apparent for the consumer. It could just benefit the corporations/Governments. Just because it's free trade doesn't mean it'll be good for the poor sods who buy the products that are imported or exported.

Wouldn't it remove any import taxes meaning consumers would only have to pay VAT thus making things extremely cheaper?...

[Chippiewill]

Of course outside the EU we'd already have this free trade agreement with the US, but it's better than nothing.

[GommeInc]

Wouldn't it remove any import taxes meaning consumers would only have to pay VAT thus making things extremely cheaper?...

In theory it should, but retailers, suppliers and more noticeably transport firms may tweak their costs to benefit from it. When the EU free trade agreement took hold many many many years ago there wasn't huge differences. Things were cheaper, but not as cheap as they should be because the suppliers, even the transport companies, put up prices to reap the rewards because consumers do not generally keep that much of a watchful eye on prices (supermarkets are proof at how consumers do not pay attention to prices). The difference now is that back then European Imports weren't as large and as regular as they are now.

It's promising, but may not be as beneficial to the consumer as it probably should be

[-:Undertaker:-]

Fantastic news, whether this will actually go ahead though is another matter since this is just negotiations. If it does happen, i'll have to definitely rethink my views on the EU.

So you'd sell your countrys national independence and sovereignty for a free trade deal? do you even know what the European Union is about? trade is only a very small part of it. It seems that despite the numerous times I quote top advocates of European integration throughout the decades, you still have no idea what the purpose of the European Union is and what its final destination is. How much clearer do they have to make it to you?

I agree entirely with Chippiewill on his common sense point, although like Ryan I agree that i'm highly doubtful that anything meaningful will pass from EU-US talks. The French for example have stalled the international Doha talks on lowering agricultural subsidies (so thats not going anywhere) and I know the US has very high tariffs of agricultural produce aswell - unlike Ryan though, I think free trade benefits people in all circumstances... but I agree that I cannot see anything meaningful or revolutionary resulting from any deal concluded.

Although if the European Union does secure some lowering of tariffs, regulations and taxation - to add to what Chippiewill said, this would be a good starting point in a few years time when we're looking to secure a free-trade agreement with the United States ourselves after we've left the EU. Along with that ability regained, we'll be able to secure a free trade agreement among the Commonwealth (which we cannot do at the moment) which would mean extensive deals with powerhouse economies such as India, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa, a future Burma & many more.

I've always believed that Britains decline can be stalled and even reversed, it's just up to us to take it.