OTTAWA-
International Trade Minister Mary Ng says Canada is officially launching a challenge to “unwarranted and unjust” US duties on Canadian softwood lumber.
The Canadian government today filed a notice of dispute under the dispute settlement system of the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement.
Ng said in a statement that the duties hurt Canadian businesses and workers, but also serve as a tax on American consumers already struggling with inflation and supply chain problems.
The United States halved its anti-dumping and countervailing duty rate earlier this month, from 17.61% to 8.59%, but Ng signaled that Canada would continue to fight the measures.
The gist of the US argument is that the stumpage fees the provinces charge for timber harvested from Crown lands amount to subsidies, since US producers must instead pay market rates.
Ng says Canada stands ready to work toward a negotiated solution to this long-standing dispute.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 29, 2022.