“We hope no later than one, two weeks, for the final agreement,” said Mexican Economy Minister Sergio Garcia, after meetings with U.S. officials.

The pact would considerably cut the high U.S. anti-dumping duty on Mexican cement and establish a quota for three years to limit Mexico’s exports.

Garcia said he could not provide further details because of the confidential nature of the negotiations. However, the new duty rate would be “very little” compared to the current duty and should be reduced further over time, he said.

Mexican cement producer Cemex, one of the world’s largest cement companies, would be a main beneficiary of the pact.

The United States has had duties averaging more than 60 percent on imports of Mexican cement since 1990. Mexico has filed a number of complaints with the World Trade Organization and under the North American Free Trade Agreement to get the duties removed.

Attempts to come to a negotiated settlement strengthened after Hurricane Katrina destroyed a huge part of the U.S. Gulf Coast in August 2005. The Gulf Coast rebuilding effort is expected to boost demand for cement, which the U.S. construction industry says is already in short supply in many states.

Mexico exported about 4.5 million tonnes of cement to the United States before the duties were imposed, compared to 1.62 million tonnes last year.