BC Lumber Trade Council Applauds WTO Ruling Supporting Canada’s Position on Softwood Lumber

(Vancouver, B.C.) - The BC Lumber Trade Council (BCLTC) applauds today’s World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling that vindicates Canada in its challenge to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s 2017 subsidy determination against Canadian softwood lumber products. 

After an exhaustive, two-year review of Commerce’s findings with respect to countervailing duties, the WTO panel agreed with Canada that every key finding of subsidization was without merit.  

“For more than three years, our industry has paid billions of dollars in countervailing duties that today’s decision confirmed should never have been paid in the first place” said Susan Yurkovich, President and CEO of BCLTC.  

In its 225-page report, the WTO identified more than 40 instances where, in its own words, no ‘unbiased and objective’ investigating authority could have reached the findings that Commerce made based on the evidence before it. 

“This report is a scathing indictment of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s subsidy findings and the biased process it followed in reaching them”, Ms. Yurkovich observed. “For three decades, we have been saying that the U.S. trade remedy process is flawed. Unfortunately, this is just the latest chapter in the ongoing attack on the Canadian lumber industry. Each of the prior two lumber disputes ended with neutral, international tribunals issuing rulings that forced Commerce to rescind their flawed and unsupported subsidy findings for similar reasons. Today’s decision is an important step towards, what we expect, will be the same result. If the errors identified by the WTO Panel are properly addressed and corrected, the Department of Commerce would have no choice but to completely reject the U.S. industry’s subsidy claims and put an end to these baseless claims against Canadian producers.”

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice on trade matters for companies in B.C. representing the majority of lumber production in the province.

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Media Contact:
Alexa Young
778.229.6885
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

Statement by the BC Lumber Trade Council on NAFTA Panel Decision regarding U.S. International Trade Commission Remand Determination on Softwood Lumber

(Vancouver) – Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council made the following statement with respect to today’s decision by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) panel reviewing the affirmative injury remand determination of the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC). 

“The BC Lumber Trade Council is disappointed that the NAFTA Panel’s decision affirms the unsupportable decision reached by the USITC in its remand determination. We remain convinced that the determination that the U.S. lumber industry is “injured” by Canadian lumber imports is flawed and without merit.

It is important to remember that the Canadian Parties’ legal case against the countervailing and antidumping duty orders imposed on softwood lumber is a multi-faceted one. Even with today’s decision affirming the USITC remand determination on injury, the Canadian parties still have pending WTO and NAFTA challenges to the Department of Commerce’s underlying countervailing duty and antidumping duty determinations that have yet to be resolved. We are confident that those proceedings will yield favorable results as they have done in the past, and that the duties ultimately will be ruled to be unwarranted.   

We will continue to work with the Government of Canada to vigorously defend against baseless U.S. trade action on softwood lumber.”

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice on trade matters for companies in B.C. representing the majority of lumber production in the province.

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Media Contact:

Alexa Young
778.229.6885
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

Statement by the BC Lumber Trade Council on U.S. International Trade Commission Remand Determination on Softwood Lumber

(Vancouver) – Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council made the following statement with respect to today’s remand determination by the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) reaffirming its original affirmative material injury determination ruled as flawed by the NAFTA Panel reviewing the case and sent back to USITC on September 4, 2019:

“The BC Lumber Trade Council is disappointed that the USITC has come to the same unsupportable decision reached in its original determination. We will be working with the Government of Canada to promptly challenge today’s decision.

BCLTC is confident the Panel will again conclude that the Commission’s determination that the U.S. lumber industry is “injured” by Canadian lumber imports continues to be flawed in a number of important respects”.

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Media Contact:

Alexa Young
778.229.6885
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

BC Lumber Trade Council comments on NAFTA Panel Ruling on Softwood Lumber

(Vancouver) – Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council made the following statement with respect to today’s decision by the NAFTA Panel reviewing the final affirmative injury determination of the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC):

“The BC Lumber Trade Council is gratified to see the NAFTA Panel’s ruling today that the USITC’s determination that the U.S. lumber industry is “injured” by Canadian lumber imports is flawed in a number of important respects. 

The Panel’s decision to send the case back to the USITC for a new determination is in keeping with the fact that in previous softwood lumber litigation, not one of the USITC’s affirmative determinations on injury survived appeal to a NAFTA or WTO panel.

In its decision, the NAFTA Panel rightly questioned how the USITC could reach an affirmative determination of injury when the U.S. industry was enjoying the most profitable period in its history without evaluating the industry’s performance in light of the business cycle, particularly in the wake of the recession of 2008-2009.

The Panel further found that the USITC failed to take into account its own finding that there was limited substitutability – or attenuated competition – between Canadian and domestic products, rendering its volume and price analyses flawed.  The Panel also found fault with every other aspect of the USITC’s conclusion that Canadian imports suppressed U.S. lumber prices during the period of investigation. 

The BC Lumber Trade Council is disappointed, however, by the Panel’s conclusion that Western Red Cedar/Redwood was not entitled to its own injury analysis.”

The Panel has given the USITC 90 days to issue a new determination.

By way of background, Canada is also challenging the U.S. Commerce Department’s antidumping and countervailing duty determinations before separate NAFTA panels.

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Media Contact:

Mina Laudan
778.990.0701
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

BC Lumber Trade Council Welcomes Trade Agreement with U.S. and Mexico

(Vancouver, B.C.) - The BC Lumber Trade Council issued a statement today with respect to Canada and the U.S. concluding the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement [USMCA].

"BC lumber producers congratulate Minister Chrystia Freeland and the Government of Canada on reaching a renewed trade agreement that preserves the dispute resolution mechanism previously contained in Chapter 19 of NAFTA," said Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council. 

"Chapter 10 of the new agreement maintains, for Canada and the U.S only, a binational panel review mechanism for reviewing anti-dumping and countervailing duty determinations by either country," added Yurkovich. "Having a robust and fair dispute resolution mechanism is absolutely critical to maintaining a rules-based trading system and providing an avenue for Canada and Canadian companies to appeal unwarranted duties."

While achieving a renewed trade agreement is a major step forward, the ongoing softwood lumber remains unresolved.

"The duties imposed by the U.S. Department of Commerce on Canadian softwood lumber are punitive and unfair, and are driven by the U.S. lumber lobby solely for the purpose of constraining imports of high-quality Canadian lumber to drive up prices for their own benefit. Ultimately these duties punish consumers and workers on both sides of the border," said Yurkovich. "Finding a durable resolution to the softwood lumber dispute must remain a key priority."

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S., making up about half of Canada's total lumber exports. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 140,000 jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice of trade matters for companies in British Columbia representing the majority of B.C. lumber production.

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Media Contact:

Mina Laudan
778.990.0701
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

BC Lumber Producers Welcome Government of Canada’s Appeal to the WTO

VANCOUVER, B.C. –  Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council made the following statement today on the Government of Canada’s legal action filed with the World Trade Organization [WTO]:

 “B.C. lumber producers welcome the Government of Canada’s efforts to vigorously defend Canada’s interests in trade relations with the U.S.  In particular, the Government of Canada has requested that the WTO examine the use of certain systemic trade practices that violate international trade law.

For decades, the Canadian lumber industry has been subject to unfair and unwarranted duties imposed by the U.S. Department of Commerce, and has filed appeals under the NAFTA and WTO agreements. We know that when unbiased entities review these unfair trade practices, they have found in Canada’s favour.

Canada and the U.S. enjoy one of the most productive trading relationships in the world. However, this relationship depends on fair process and practices.  As such, BC Lumber Trade Council fully supports the Government of Canada’s efforts to have the WTO review these trade practices.”

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 145,000 direct and indirect jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice on trade matters for companies in British Columbia representing the majority of B.C. lumber production.

Media Contact:

Mina Laudan
778.990.0701
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

U.S. Panel Ruling on Softwood Lumber Completely Without Merit

BC Lumber Producers Will Appeal Ruling and Vigorously Defend Industry

VANCOUVER, B.C. – Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council made the following statement today on the affirmative injury decision issued today by the U.S. International Trade Commission [ITC] on softwood lumber.

“The ruling today, while not unexpected, is completely without merit. The ITC finding of ‘injury’, despite the current record-setting profitability of the U.S. lumber industry, makes it very clear that this was not an objective evaluation of the facts.

There can be no doubt that this process is biased in favour of the U.S. industry. To our knowledge, the ITC has never before reached an affirmative decision of injury when an industry was enjoying the most profitable period in its history, which is the case today for the U.S. lumber industry. 

The fact is, there is no injury to U.S. producers and we are fully prepared to fight this egregious decision. We will initiate appeals as soon as possible and, working with both federal and provincial governments, we are confident that the ITC decision will be overturned. It is noteworthy that in both Lumber 3 and Lumber 4, not one of the decisions issued by the ITC survived independent appeals, before both NAFTA and WTO panels.   

We are confident that this latest decision by the ITC will again be reversed. The U.S. Coalition’s claims of injury ring particularly hollow given the extraordinary financial performance that the U.S. lumber industry is enjoying, and given that Canadian imports are at a lower level today than at the levels deemed non-injurious under both the 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement and by the ITC itself in the last round of litigation.”

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 145,000 direct and indirect jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice on trade matters for companies in British Columbia representing the majority of B.C. lumber production.

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Media Contact:
Mina Laudan
778.990.0701
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade

BC Lumber Trade Council supports Canada's WTO challenge against unfair US duties

BC Lumber Trade Council welcomes the Government of Canada’s decision to go to the World Trade Organization [WTO] to file a challenge against the U.S. Department of Commerce’s final determinations on anti-dumping and countervailing duties on softwood lumber.

These lumber duties are unfair and completely without merit. U.S. Department of Commerce’s practices in their investigation into Canadian lumber have been ruled illegal by the WTO in the past and we expect to be successful again in seeking that the U.S. comply with international trade rules.

B.C. Lumber Producers Will Vigorously Defend Industry Against U.S. Trade Action

Duties on Softwood Lumber Punish American Consumers, Workers and Homebuilders

VANCOUVER, B.C. –  B.C. lumber producers will continue to vigorously defend against the U.S. trade action on softwood lumber following the announcement today by the U.S. Department of Commerce on final duty rates. The combined duty rates for BC companies range from 20.83% to 23.76%.

“This decision by the U.S. Department of Commerce reduces the overall combined rates announced earlier this year,” said Susan Yurkovich, President of the BC Lumber Trade Council. “While we haven’t yet seen the reasons for the decision, it’s clear that the U.S. industry has been wholly unsuccessful with their attempt to push the Commerce Department to see these rates increased. While the rates are lower, the fact that any duties remain in place is disappointing. As we have consistently said, these duties are unwarranted and this trade action is completely without merit.” 

“This trade action is being driven by the protectionist U.S. lumber lobby whose sole purpose is to constrain imports of high-quality Canadian lumber and to drive up lumber prices for their own benefit,” said Yurkovich. “Ultimately, this punishes American consumers who are now paying higher prices for Canadian lumber when they buy, build or renovate their homes.”

Lumber producers will be required to pay the revised anti-dumping duty rate within days. The final countervailing duty rate would be imposed if and when the U.S. International Trade Commission makes a final determination on injury. This decision is expected no later than December 18, 2017.

“B.C. lumber producers continue to believe that reaching a new agreement is in the best interests of producers, workers and consumers on both sides of the border,” added Yurkovich. “Unfortunately, the U.S. industry does not appear to be interested in finding a durable solution to this dispute. As such, we will continue to work with the provincial and federal governments to vigorously defend our industry against these allegations.”

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S. The B.C. forest industry is a major contributor to the provincial economy and supports approximately 140,000 direct and indirect jobs in the province. The BC Lumber Trade Council is the voice on trade matters for companies in British Columbia representing the majority of B.C. lumber production.

Duty Rates for B.C. Companies

Media Contact:
media@bclumbertrade.com
778.990.0701
www.bclumbertrade.com
@BCLumberTrade