Trade commission says no change for Canadian lumber duties
The U.S. International Trade Commission has no plans to rescind the existing combined countervailing and antidumping duties totaling roughly 9% on certain Canadian softwood lumber products coming into the United States.
The USITC issued a press release on Nov. 30 and said, “revoking the existing antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain softwood lumber products from Canada would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury within a reasonably foreseeable time.”
Chairman David S. Johanson and Commissioners Rhonda K. Schmidtlein, Jason E. Kearns, and Amy A. Karpel voted in the affirmative.
“As a result of the Commission’s affirmative determinations, the existing orders on imports of this product from Canada will remain in place,” the USITC said.
The decision comes under the five-year (sunset) review process required by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.
In response, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) said it is opposed to lumber duties because they act as a tax on American home buyers and home builders and artificially drive up the cost of housing.
Combined with the current elevated mortgage rates, it makes housing affordability even more difficult for the average American household.
“We are disappointed in the outcome and continue to urge the U.S. and Canada to work on a long-term solution that will eliminate tariffs,” the NAHB said in a prepared statement.
Mary Ng, the Canadian Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Development, issued the following statement:
“Canada is disappointed that the USITC has determined that the United States can continue to impose unfair and unwarranted duties on Canadian softwood lumber products. U.S. duties on Canadian softwood lumber are unfounded and unjustifiably harm Canadian businesses and communities. With significant challenges in housing supply and affordability, these duties also harm U.S. consumers and businesses that need Canadian lumber.”
Several legal challenges to the most recent administrative reviews of the duties on Canadian lumber are still pending, including under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the U.S. Court of International Trade, the NAHB noted.
