Egypt’s government could repeal the ban on cement exports before its scheduled end if prices fall, the country’s deputy trade minister said on Tuesday.

The export ban could also be extended beyond October if local prices did not stabilise, Hesham Ragab told Reuters at a grains conference in the Sinai resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

"They could be reviewed at any time," he said. "They could be extended or they could be ended."

Egypt last week banned cement exports between Mar. 29 and Oct. 1, saying a construction boom in the most populous Arab country had caused shortages in the local market.