U.S. sets revised softwood duties

MONTREAL The United States will continue to hammer imported Canadian softwood lumber, but the U.S. Commerce department said Thursday that it will impose smaller penalties than originally announced.

In its final determination, Commerce said most Canadian producers will pay a combined countervailing and anti-dumping rate of 20.83 per cent, down from 26.75 per cent in the preliminary determinations issued earlier this year.

“While I am disappointed that a negotiated agreement could not be made between domestic and Canadian softwood producers, the United States is committed to free, fair and reciprocal trade with Canada,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a news release.

“This decision is based on a full and unbiased review of the facts in an open and transparent process that defends American workers and businesses from unfair trade practices.”

The Trudeau government responded by saying it will continue to defend the Canadian lumber industry against protectionist trade measures, including possibly turning to litigation.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland and Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr called the punitive duties “unfair, unwarranted and deeply troubling.”

“We urge the U.S. administration to rescind these duties, which harm workers and communities in Canada,” they said in a joint statement.

Carr plans to convene the Federal-Provincial Task Force on Softwood Lumber in the coming days to discuss developments.