Officials will rush to lock in progress on controversial trade deal before Barack Obama leaves White House in January.

Trade negotiators will meet in New York next week to search for common ground on the controversial EU-US trade deal, which has been buffeted by strong opposition on both sides of the Atlantic.

A team of 90 EU negotiators will travel to New York for five days of talks on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), starting on Monday.

Hopes of a deal before US president Barack Obama leaves the White House in mid-January have evaporated, raising doubts about whether TTIP can ever be agreed amid widespread hostility and regular street protests.

Cecilia Malmstrm, the EU trade commissioner, said last week: “If we were not to conclude TTIP before 19 January, then there would be a natural pause.”

Her opposite number, US trade representative Michael Froman, is expected to leave his post during the White House changeover. By the time his successor is in place a process that may take six months Germany will be in the midst of a national election campaign.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/sep/30/ttip-eu-and-us-trade-negotiators-seek-to-get-talks-back-on-track