The United States and Canada announced an agreement on Thursday to settle a drawn-out and heated trade battle over softwood lumber, a major home-building component.

The agreement was announced at a joint U.S.-Canada news conference at the Canadian Embassy in the United States.

Canada's share of the U.S. market would not exceed 34 percent, according to published descriptions of the agreement. To protect American producers from a drop in prices, Canada would impose an export tax of as much as 15 percent, depending on the market price of lumber.

"This agreement is a historic opportunity to resolve a dispute that has lasted for more than two decades," U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman said.

Canada exports about 10 billion dollars softwood lumber, mainly for house construction, annually to the United States, about one- third of the U.S. market.

U.S. tariffs on the Canadian lumber started at an average of 27 percent in 2002, but now average 11 percent because of various reviews and trade panel rulings.

White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said that the leaders of the two countries congratulated each other on bringing the long-running dispute to an end.

Source: Xinhua