Chemicals were brought clearly into the frame when the European Commission released on 14 May its much-anticipated negotiating positions (CW 15 May 2014) for the fifth round of talks on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) on 19-23 May in the US. The Commission’s TTIP position on chemicals regulatory co-operation acknowledges that current regulations differ significantly on both sides of the Atlantic, and proposes that harmonisation and mutual recognition should be off the table. They rightly see scope, however, to co-operate in four areas that could bring efficiencies and costs saving to both regulators and industry. The chemicals sectors in the EU and US strongly support TTIP: we should. Total EU-US chemicals trade was ?49bn in 2013, of which more than a third involves intracompany trade. We also see the TTIP as a way to save costs and reduce complexities, both in traditional trade issues and in enhanced regulatory co-operation. These benefits would help companies compete better in an increasingly globalised and competitive chemicals market.
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