EU-U.S. trade talks face growing hostility, ministers warn

Free-trade talks between the United States and the European Union are in danger of being derailed by populist groups opposing everything from globalization to multinationals, EU ministers and business leaders said on Friday. The rise of anti-EU parties, reports of U.S. spying in Europe and accusations that a trade pact would pander to big companies have combined to erode public support for a deal that proponents say would dramatically increase economic growth. "We are grappling with people who are anti-European, who are anti-American, who are anti-free trade, who are anti-globalization and who are anti-multinational corporations," Finland's minister for Europe and trade, Alexander Stubb, told his EU counterparts and business leaders at a meeting in Athens. With the euro zone's economy barely out of a two-year recession, EU governments see a trade deal with the United States as the best way to create jobs.

via Business News - Yahoo Finance http://ift.tt/1pCIw9Q