As deadline nears, Trudeau, Trump discuss prospects of quick NAFTA deal

President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussed the possibility Monday of immediately wrapping up a NAFTA deal despite signs of skepticism about whether that goal is feasible.

U.S. officials are sounding less than bullish about the prospects of a NAFTA deal by week's end, which is considered the unofficial deadline for finalizing an agreement this year.

That's because some view the de facto deadline as Thursday, high-level negotiators don't even have a meeting time set yet for this week and one leading U.S. politician says none of the hot-button issues have been resolved.

The countries have been meeting frequently in an effort to get an agreement before national elections in Mexico and the U.S. delay the process until 2019.

This article was excerpted from the 14 May 2018 edition of CBC News.