Final round of FTA talks approaches

SOUTH AFRICA’S chief trade negotiator Xavier Carim is optimistic that the December deadline for the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and the European Free Trade Area (EFTA) will be met.
The SACU countries - South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland - and the EFTA countries - Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Iceland - are due to meet this month for the final round of negotiations.
The negotiations were initiated in May 2003.
Europe essentially comprises the EFTA countries and those belonging to the European Union, with which an FTA is already in place with SA.