“Unjustified and harmful.”
That’s how the BC Lumber Trade Council describes the U.S. government’s decision to impose a 25 percent tariff on softwood lumber and other Canadian exports, which have since been delayed by one month.
President Kurt Niquidet says it will cause economic harm on both sides of the border, adding that BC softwood lumber producers already face 14.4 percent duties on their shipments to the U.S.
Niquidet says these barriers will disrupt trade, raise costs for consumers, and threaten jobs and communities in both countries.
The Council says Canada-U.S. lumber trade is mutually beneficial.
“American demand exceeds domestic supply–requiring U.S. builders to import about thirty percent of their lumber needs. Canadian producers fill most of this gap, ensuring a stable, predictable supply of quality lumber. Tariffs disrupt this essential supply chain, increasing building material costs, at a time when affordability is already a major concern for American families.”
Niquidet says for Canadian producers, higher tariffs erode competitiveness and put mills under financial strain…leading to curtailments, job losses, and economic harm to forestry-dependent communities.
The BC Lumber Trade Council is urging the Canadian government to work with it’s U.S. counterparts to remove the tariffs and to reach a fair, long-term solution.
The delay on the tariffs was announced this afternoon, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stating Canada is implementing a $1.3-billion plan to strengthen the border, a plan that was originally announced in December.
Additionally, Trudeau says Canada will also appoint a “fentanyl czar.”
–Files from George Henderson, My Cariboo Now
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