PANAMA CITY, May 31 (Xinhua) -- El Salvador and Panama have signed a protocol modifying the bilateral free trade agreement that has been in effect since April 11, 2003, closing a loophole on cheese product tariffs, Panama's Commerce Ministry said on Wednesday.

    Panama's Commerce and Industry Minister Alejandro Ferrer and ElSalvador's ambassador to Panama Gerardo Sol Mixto signed the deal, which established a zero tariff for the first 250,000 U.S. dollars worth of all cheese products traded each year, and a variable system of tariffs for cheese products that go beyond the quota.

    The agreement has to be ratified by the legal authorities in both countries before it comes into force.

    Ferrer said that with the signing of the deal, cheese producers will boost their exports, and that Panama will continue to promote trade through such deals.

    Panama exported 9.3 million dollars worth of goods to El Salvador in 2005. Goods traded within the frame of the agreement registered an increase of 12 percent compared to a year earlier. Enditem