National leader Christopher Luxon looks to have failed the first deliverable he set himself - admitting it's unlikely he'll have formed a Government in time to represent New Zealand at the APEC summit in San Francisco this week.
He's also admitted there are still issues for the three parties - National, ACT and New Zealand First - to work through, putting a date for a new Government further out of sight.
There are some rooms you can only enter if you're a Prime Minister. Once in, you rub shoulders with the powerhouses of international politics.
Luxon has made it very clear he wanted in on the grip-and-grin APEC summit this year and it almost became a deadline of sorts for a Government to be formed.
It's a deadline fast approaching.
"I think it's increasingly unlikely," Luxon said on AM on Monday when asked about whether he would be able to attend APEC.
"I just say that because I really want to be here on the ground so we can form a strong and stable Government. That has to be my job number one."
He was working through the weekend at all hours to try and get himself on the plane.
"We finished at 2am on Saturday morning and a late night on Saturday as well. It's been full on."
But he's not got his ducks in a row.
"This week will be a really important week. We have some outstanding issues we need to get resolved."
It's the first hint of an admission from the band of brokers that they've hit a roadblock.
ACT leader David Seymour told Newshub it was "certainly true" that the parties had "narrowed the issues, but there are some remaining".
Meanwhile, New Zealand First's Shane Jones said any issues would be "traversed by our rangatira Winston [Peters]".
"Last week they were fairly well canvased but as I understand there are more talks going on."
Luxon said talks have been "very focussed and very constructive and very positive".
"We've had our moments, I am sure we've had points of disagreement but we've been able to work through that very well."
No one is willing to define the problems, but National's foreign buyers tax is likely a problem for NZ First and ACT's Treaty referendum is a likely problem for National.
"There's different objections to different policies, we're all working through that as a threesome," said Seymour.
Former Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson has joined the chorus saying a referendum would be divisive.
"I think it would be a bit of a disaster really, and I like David Seymour and I have told him so," he said on Monday.
Seymour said: "I'm very confident that we are going to see that issue advance. "
Luxon has talked up his business credentials and talked up his art of the deal.
Seymour said all political leaders are "doing this for the first time in some way".
"Even Winston Peters who says this is not his first rodeo but every coalition negotiation is different."
Luxon said the parties are going through all three of their manifestos.
"It's a huge amount of work and it's a huge amount of complexity."
There is no end date in sight.
"I think we'd be pretty close if we hadn't done it this week," said Seymour.
Jones said they were there to "create a Government that resembles a Mustang, not a bike ridden by the Greens".
There have been 719 hours since polls closed - and still, we wait.
