Canada’s international trade minister is criticizing the U.S. Commerce Department for nearly doubling tariffs on softwood lumber, calling the move “unfair and baseless.”
Minister Mary Ng says the United States has significantly increased tariffs on softwood lumber from Canada, from 8.05% to 14.54%.
It is the latest salvo in a bilateral back-and-forth that Ottawa describes as hampering efforts to improve the cost and supply of housing.
Minister Ng said the increase will hurt consumers and producers on both sides of the border and called for a lasting resolution to the long-standing dispute.
The BC Lumber Trade Council in British Columbia says the move could not have come at a worse time, making an already difficult situation worse.
President Kurt Niquidet said in a statement that this will affect manufacturing, jobs and communities in the province.
To see in video