EU, Mercosur Set to Ramp Up Trade Talks, Exchange Offers in April

The EU and the South American customs bloc Mercosur are set to ramp up their negotiations for a trade agreement between them in the coming months, following a prolonged stall. Over the past few weeks, high-level officials have held a series of meetings in a bid to move the talks forward. This included a visit to the Argentine capital by Federica Mogherini, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, earlier this month, where she met with Mauricio Macri, the new Argentine president who took office late last year. The change in government in Buenos Aires – following the controversial eight-year tenure of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who was herself preceded in office by her late husband, Néstor Kirchner – has sparked hopes among some of the country’s trading partners that there may be efforts on the horizon to pursue more open economic policies. Regarding the plan to exchange market access offers next month, Mogherini told reporters after her discussions with Macri that it is “an ambitious and realistic goal.” “After such a long negotiation, we have to make sure that all the right steps are taken. The offers have to be credible and substantial,” she said, according...