February 3, 2020, the U.S. Department of Commerce released its preliminary determination for the First Administrative Review (AR1) in antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations of imports of certain softwood lumber products from Canada.
The final determination by the US Commerce Dept on Canada’s softwood lumber duty rate will be in August. At that time duty rates could be lowered to:
- 9.08 per cent from 23.56 per cent for West Fraser
- 4.63 per cent from 20.52 per cent at Canfor
- 15.84 per cent from 17.90 per cent at Resolute Forest Products
- 4.32 per cent from 9.38 per cent at J.D. Irving
- 8.21 per cent for “all others”.
Full details provided by the British Columbia Ministry of Forests here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/forestry/competitive-forest-industry/softwood-lumber-trade-with-the-u-s
BC Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations
As both these rates are only preliminary, rates may change in the final determination; therefore, there is no change yet to the duties companies pay on their U.S. shipments. Once the final determination, expected to be released on August 6, 2020, is published in the Federal Register (expected approximately August 12, 2020) the new cash deposit rates will apply for new shipments.
The Commerce Department started slapping preliminary duties on Canadian lumber in April, 2017. The final combined tariffs took effect in January, 2018. Those duties worked out to a weighted average of 20.23 per cent, consisting of 14.19 per cent in countervailing duties and 6.04 per cent in anti-dumping levies, imposed against most Canadian lumber exporters.
Globe and Mail