U.S. to ratchet up Canadian lumber duties
The U.S. vs. Canada lumber dispute saga is heating up once again.
The U.S. Department of Commerce, which had already raised duties against Canadian softwood lumber to 14.5 percent in 2024, now says it plans to raise levies to 34.45 percent by late 2025. The rate hikes are "preliminary" and have not been finalized (and won't be at least until late summer or early fall). The duties, which are determined by the U.S. Department of Commerce's analysis of data pertaining to Canada's levels of selling lumber below cost in the U.S. ("dumping") and subsidies received from its government, are separate from tariffs, which can be enacted by the president. Lumber was exempted from the first round of tariffs announced by President Trump but could potentially be tacked on sometime later this year. If so, those tariffs would be in addition to the new duty rate when it takes effect.
Regardless of how it shakes out, there doesn't appear to be any indication of a potential thaw, compromise or breakthrough in the longstanding conflict.
In response to the Department of Commerce's announcement, British Columbia Premier David Eby pushed back, stating:
"The U.S. Department of Commerce announced yesterday that they are going to more than double countervailing duties imposed on Canadian softwood lumber, driving up housing costs for Americans who voted for a President who promised to lower costs. This is an attack on forest workers and British Columbians. I know that during hard times it is often the workers who pay the price. To every forestry worker in British Columbia hearing the news of this impending increase to softwood lumber duties, know this: We have got your back and your government will fight for you."
Meanwhile, the U.S. Lumber Coalition, which has long decried Canada's lumber trading practices, celebrated the news. Andrew Miller, who owns Stimson Lumber Company and is chairman of the U.S. Lumber Coalition, writes:
“Unfair trade by Canada to the tune of 34.45 percent in the U.S. softwood lumber market substantiates yet again the everyday egregious harm to the U.S. industry by Canada’s abusive dumping and subsidies practices. These unfair trade practices are designed by Canada to maintain an artificially inflated U.S. market share for Canadian products and force U.S. companies to curtail production, thereby killing U.S. jobs."
According to the NAHB, which has been outspoken against tariffs on essential homebuilding materials, Canada accounts for approximately 85 percent of all U.S. softwood lumber imports and accounts for nearly 25 percent of the available supply in the U.S. On the Canadian side, the U.S. is by far the largest market for its forest products, with exports of $10 billion in 2021, or 61 percent of the total forest product export value.
