Petition Filed on Black Friday

U.S. lumber coalition fires first shot in new lumber war

By Gordon Hamilton
Nov 25, 2016

The American lumber lobby filed a petition Friday with the United States government alleging Canadian lumber is being subsidized by provinces like B.C., and dumped at discount prices into the U.S. market. The coalition’s petition is expected to result in heavy enough penalties on Canadian lumber producers to force shift curtailments and mill closures. Mills in Canada can expect preliminary duties of up to 30% by April, said Kevin Mason, of ERA Forest Products Research. “It puts a new spin on what Black Friday means,” Mason said in an interview Friday. “They are doing this for a reason – to hammer the Canadians – and I am sure they will be very creative in coming up with justifications for duties around the 30% range. …Susan Yurkovich, president of the B.C. Lumber Trade Council, said in a statement Friday that the U.S. claims are based on unsubstantiated arguments.

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