Honduran President Manuel Zelaya on Saturday announced the finalization of the delayed free trade agreement with the United States, according to reports from Tegucigalpa, capital of Honduras.

Zelaya, who was sworn in as president in January, addressed participants at a ceremony to inaugurate the deal, saying the treaty opens "a way ... to broaden our growth possibilities and reduce our poverty."

Central American countries of Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Costa Rica, as well as the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean, signed a Central American Free Trade Agreement with the United States in 2004.

Although the document has been ratified by all the six nations, the United States suspended the deal citing differences in such areas as the protection of intellectual property rights, a key U.S. demand.

So far, only El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras have finalized the pact which was originally intended to take effect on Jan. 1,2006.

Source: Xinhua