EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy said that the two sides hope to have an agreement before an October 31 deadline. "We got the feeling that with one little more push on each side, the thing would be nicely ended for us to celebrate," he remarked.

Mercosur, which comprises Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, hopes that its agricultural goods will gain better access to European markets as a result of the increased quotas proposed by the European Union.

For its part, the EU wants to hear a revised proposal from Mercosur involving improved access to government procurement, telecommunications, marine shipping and banking.