U.S., five Central American countries trying to wrap up free trade pact

[arcos]

U.S., five Central American countries trying to wrap up free trade pact

The Bush administration, stymied in efforts to create a hemisphere-wide free trade zone, is trying to first take a smaller bite of the apple by establishing an alliance with five countries in Central America.

But even this scaled-down free trade agreement, which could be finalized as early as Tuesday, is running into stiff opposition from U.S. textile companies, the sugar industry and American unions.

Negotiators from the United States and the five Central American countries - Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua - met for an eighth day Monday at a downtown Washington hotel trying to overcome the final obstacles to completing a pact.

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Faced with this type of opposition, there is speculation that the administration may not even try to get a vote on the Central America deal in 2004, a presidential election year.

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