Representatives from Costa Rica and Panama Friday agreed to sign a free-trade agreement between the two countries after nine rounds of negotiation, according to the daily La Nación.

The agreement will allow 90% of Costa Rican products to enter its southern neighbor tariff-free, while the other 10% will be exempted from taxes for five to 17 years.

During the final round of negotiations, the two countries reached agreements on financial services, telecommunications and ketchup, among other goods and services, the daily reported.

Costa Rican Foreign Trade Minister Marco Vinicio Ruiz said he is “very satisfied” with the agreement and that he hopes it will be signed within one month after a legal review.

His Panamanian counterpart Alejandro Ferrer agreed “we have reached a historic agreement, in a moment when there is an excellent relationship between the two countries. I think that with this treaty, our commercial relations will benefit greatly,” according to the wire service ACAN-EFE.

During 2006, Costa Rica exported $196.2 million worth of goods to Panama and imported $159 million worth of goods from that country.

-Tico Times