UK-EU trade talks ended in stalemate

A week of intense trade talks between Britain and the European Union ended in stalemate Friday, with negotiators stepping back while politicians decide whether major differences can be bridged to avoid a messy, economically disruptive rupture in less than a month.EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier and his British counterpart, David Frost, said they had agreed to pause negotiations while they brief the two sides' political leaders. They said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will discuss the state of play..

British Business Secretary Alok Sharma said earlier Friday that talks were in a difficult phase, while France warned it could veto any agreement it didn't like.UK officials briefed media outlets that the EU had set back negotiations by making last-minute demands an allegation the bloc denied.Talks have dragged on as one deadline after another has slipped by. First, the goal was a deal by October, then by mid-November. On Sunday, Britain said the negotiations were in their final week.

The UK left the EU early this year, but remains part of the 27-nation bloc's economic embrace during an 11-month transition as the two sides try to negotiate a new free-trade deal to take effect Jan. 1. Any deal must be approved by lawmakers in Britain and the EU before year's end.A trade deal will allow goods to move between Britain and the EU without tariffs or quotas after the end of this year, though there would still be new costs and red tape for businesses on both sides of the English Channel.If there is no deal, New Year's Day will bring huge disruption, with the overnight imposition of tariffs and other barriers to U.K.-EU trade. That will hurt both sides, but the burden will fall most heavily on Britain, which does almost half its trade with the EU.