It is NAHB’s view that, while Canadian lumber is not subsidized, a clearer pricing system would be in the best interest of all parties involved in the current dispute over import duties.
Under the Commerce Department's proposal, the Canadian provinces would adopt open, market-based pricing for timber sales. Once these were phased in, the U.S. would rescind the 27% countervailing and anti-dumping duties that were imposed last year on Canadian lumber shipments.
Officials on both sides of the border have been trying to decide what to do until the reforms are implemented, and they have reportedly been leaning toward collecting an export duty on shipments exceeding a specific volume.
NAHB First Vice President Bobby Rayburn said that the association strongly opposes any interim quotas because they would “disrupt the markets, lead to price volatility and just substitute one tax on American consumers for another.”
Grassley predicted that a quota “likely would cause lumber prices to increase as supplies diminish.” He added that a lumber quota aimed at housing and construction, two of the strongest sectors of the economy, “could put a big damper on growth.”
The best way to ensure free lumber trade, according to NAHB, is for Canada to continue its legal appeals against the duties before a North American Free Trade Agreement panel and World Trade Organization, where it has already scored significant preliminary legal wins.
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