Susan Yurkovich, president of the BC Lumber Trade Council made the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (DOC) issuance of final countervailing (CVD) and anti-dumping (AD) rates on Canadian softwood lumber. The new combined rate will be 8.59%, dropping from the current combined rate of 17.91%.
“While the reduction in duty rates from this third Administrative Review is welcome, the fact that we are required to continue to pay duties on our lumber products sold to the U.S. market remains frustrating and disappointing. As we have long emphasized, these unfair duties hurt not only B.C. businesses and workers, but also U.S. consumers looking to repair, remodel and build new homes. As U.S. producers remain unable to meet domestic demand, these duties continue to hinder post-pandemic recovery and exacerbate inflationary pressures on both sides of the border.”
“Our strong hope is that the U.S. industry will end this decades-long litigation and instead work with us to meet demand for the low-carbon wood products the world wants, including American families. Until then, we will continue to vigorously defend our industry against these meritless allegations.”
B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice on trade matters for companies in B.C. representing the majority of lumber production in the province.
Full statement here: BC Lumber Trade Council.
