Hard and shrewd bargaining (5-7)
I believe the answer is:
horse-trading
'hard and shrewd bargaining' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for horse-trading that I've seen before include "tough negotiations" , "Hard and shrewd bargaining" , "Hard bargaining (at yearling sales?)" , "Ordering hats (anag) - ordering quadrupeds?" .)