Natural resources ministers from Canada's federal and provincial governments have said that they stand firmly behind the forest industry, following the imposition by the US of new duties on imports of softwood lumber.
 
The members of the Federal-Provincial Task Force on Softwood Lumber held a teleconference on June 27. According to a statement from the federal department of natural resources, ministers reiterated their commitment to vigorously defend the industry's interests.
 
Ministers agreed to continue to discuss how Canada will respond to the action taken by the US Department of Commerce. The statement added that ministers agreed that the Canadian Government "should continue to forcefully press its American counterparts to rescind these unfair and unwarranted trade actions while remaining confident that a negotiated settlement is not only possible but in the best interests of both countries."
 
In a preliminary determination in an antidumping investigation, the US Department of Commerce this week said that exporters from Canada have sold softwood lumber in the US at 7.72 percent to 4.59 percent less than fair value. US Customs and Border Protection will now collect cash deposits from importers of Canadian softwood lumber based on these preliminary rates.
 
In April, the Department preliminarily concluded that exporters of softwood lumber from Canada had received countervailable subsidies of 3.02 percent to 24.12 percent.
 
When combined, the applicable duty rates now range from 14.41 percent to 30.88 percent.
 
Earlier this month, the Canadian Government announced a CAD867m (USD580.2m) package of support measures for the forestry industry, which includes federal loans and loan guarantees.