Category Archives: Business & Politics

WASHINGTON — Reports indicate that the B.C. Minister of Forests has created an “Advisory Council” to develop strategies for combating U.S. antidumping and countervailing duties. These duties are in place as a result of repeated findings by the U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. International Trade Commission that Canada’s egregious ongoing dumping practices and long-standing subsidies to its industry have caused havoc in the U.S. market. Andrew Miller, Chairman and Owner of Stimson Lumber, stated that “this is not a complicated issue. Canada must stop dumping its excess lumber production into the U.S. market and should stop subsidizing its industry instead of convening an ‘Advisory Council’ in British Columbia to study ways of getting around U.S. trade laws.”

As President Donald Trump ushers in a slew of new policy changes, the proposed 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico—if implemented after the recently introduced 30-day pause—could significantly escalate the cost of lumber, further complicating the already strained U.S. housing market. Some experts predict a near-tripling of costs that could undermine home affordability at a time when the nation grapples with a housing crunch. …According to Carl Harris, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), over 70% of softwood lumber and gypsum, which is used in drywall, originate from Canada and Mexico. …Robert Dietz, chief economist at the NAHB, outlined the risks posed by tariffs as it relates to lumber costs. …Per Dietz, not only could they nearly triple the cost of lumber, a critical component of home building, but they would also drive up prices for consumers, putting homeownership out of reach for many Americans.

Regardless of whether Trump will impose tariffs, Canadian supply chains have become the epicentre of these looming disruptions. The country urgently needs to strengthen its supply chain resilience. If the tariffs were to go into effect, they would reshape the geo-political ecosystem of North America and beyond by disrupting global supply chains. These supply chains are a direct reflection of the geo-political ecosystem in which they operate, and they require stability to establish and thrive. …One of the most effective ways for Canada to strengthen its supply chain resilience is to reduce its heavy trade reliance on the U.S., which can be done through free trade agreements. …Beyond international trade, Canada should also eliminate interprovincial trade barriers to facilitate easier business operations across Canadian provinces and territories. …It is never too late to start, but waiting any longer is no longer an option for Canada.

Data provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Fastmarkets Random Lengths confirm that cost of lumber is a very small component of the price of a new home. Consequently, duties on a share of that lumber imported from Canada resulting from the enforcement of U.S. trade laws against Canada’s egregious unfair trade practices in softwood lumber have a near-zero impact on the price of a new home. The time has come to turn the page on this false narrative by Canada and its U.S. allies that duties on Canadian softwood lumber are a big driver of the cost of constructing a new home… “Since Canada relies almost exclusively on the U.S. market to unload its excess lumber production at any cost—for example, through massive dumping—this new U.S. self reliance for its softwood lumber needs is causing panic within the Canadian lumber export industry,” stated Zoltan van Heyningen, U.S. Lumber Coalition Executive Director. 

California homebuilders say they have few options but to keep buying Canadian lumber, even if it’s hit with 25% tariffs, as they rebuild thousands of homes destroyed by devastating wildfires in Los Angeles. Dan Dunmoyer, president of the California Building Industry Association, said Wednesday that “there aren’t really alternatives” to Canadian lumber because about 80% of Californian land is owned by the federal or state governments and can’t be logged. Dunmoyer also said California lacks mills, environmental policies and supply chains that would allow a quick switch to local lumber production. “We like Canadian lumber. It’s super high-quality, properly harvested for the environment. …”I understand it’s all about jobs.… But to try to do this over a weekend and say, ‘Hey, we just want to put these big tariffs on any country without creating the economy within your own country,’ [it] just means higher prices, full stop, full period.”

ACKERMAN, Mississippi — Southeastern Timber Products announced this week it is investing $123.4 million to expand its operations in Ackerman, which could create as many as 40 jobs. Southeastern Timber Products is a family-owned-and-operated manufacturer of southern yellow pine lumber, timber and decking products. The company is expanding its Ackerman sawmill to increase production capacity from 120 million board feet per year to 300 million board feet per year. To facilitate the project, Southeastern Timber Products will install a new sawmill line, new dry kilns and storage facilities. Southeastern Timber Products has a joint venture partnership with Tolko Industries, a company based in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada. One of the largest Canadian investments in Mississippi, Tolko has embarked on what will ultimately be a $150 million investment in the STP lumber mill that was announced in 2022.

A wide shadow of uncertainty has been cast over Canada’s forestry sector by President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a 25% tariff on its lumber products. Several industry groups have released statements criticizing the tariff as unnecessary and harmful for both sides, a sentiment echoed by British Columbia Premier David Eby. …Eby said forestry companies aren’t sure how they should invest or if they should put money into their companies at all. …Forest Products Association of Canada president Derek Nighbor said the US can meet about 70% of its homebuilding lumber needs. …The BC Lumber Trade Council called the tariff plan a “punitive, unjustified protectionist measure.” …National Association of Home Builders chairman Carl Harris said, “Tariffs on lumber and other building materials increase the cost of construction and discourage new development, and consumers end up paying for the tariffs in the form of higher home prices.”

The vast majority—72%—of respondents to an HBSDealer poll question say the United States should not pursue a policy of aggressive growth. However, an aggressive approach has been launched —and then quickly paused. …For the home improvement industry, tariffs on Canadian lumber continue to be a central and controversial topic. …NAHB Chairman Carl Harris. “NAHB urges the administration to reconsider this action on tariffs, and we will continue to work with policymakers to eliminate barriers that make housing more costly and prevent builders from boosting housing production.” …Meanwhile, with a deeply ingrained opposition to imports subsidized by the Canadian government, the U.S. lumber industry applauds the tariffs. It also discounts the idea that increasing the tariffs on Canadian lumber imports would lead to significantly higher home prices. The US Lumber Coalition argues that softwood lumber prices are currently low and have not kept pace with general inflation.

Maine exports about 2 million tons of wood products annually, and imports 2.3 million tons – mostly from Canada, according to a recent industry report from the Maine Forest Service. Lumber industry officials are concerned the Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs could hurt business, said Patrick Strauch, of the Maine Forest Products Council. “Maine’s forest economy is really intertwined with both Quebec and New Brunswick, Strauch said. “We’re concerned about a broad tariff and how it would distrust disrupt the economy.” Wood pulp and fibers, in particular, are a big part of what moves across the border in order to produce particle board, packaging, and other products in Maine. Strauch said mills located near the border import goods from Canada on a regular basis. “If you’re a pulp mill that’s located close to the border of Canada, you’re going to be importing wood fiber from Canada. That’s just how it works in Maine,” he said.

As Canadians absorb U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war and his threats to make Canada the 51st state, one thing has become abundantly clear: One of the world’s most durable and amicable alliances — born of geography, heritage and centuries of common interests — is broken. Canadians are feeling an undeniable sense of betrayal after Trump declared a trade war against America’s northern neighbor and longtime ally. Trump keeps threatening Canada’s sovereignty and and vowing to put sweeping 25% tariffs on Canadian products, though Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday afternoon the tariffs will be postponed by at least 30 days after he promised more cooperation on the border.

In Canada, discussion and disapproval are everywhere. Canadian hockey fans have even been booing the American national anthem at recent National Hockey League games. Addressing the nation this past weekend, Trudeau channeled the betrayal that many Canadians are feeling, reminding Americans that Canadian troops fought alongside them in Afghanistan and helped respond to myriad crises from wildfires in California to Hurricane Katrina. The ties between the two countries are without parallel. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian worth of goods and services cross the border each day. “It’s certainly one of the worst moments in Canada-U.S. relations since the creation of Canada in 1867,” Daniel Beland at McGill University said. “His talk about making Canada the 51st state is a direct attack against the country’s sovereignty. Even if we exclude that threat, he shows no respect for Canada’s sovereignty and institutions.”

Donald Trump & David Eby

Uncertainty still hangs over the Canadian economy despite U.S. President Donald Trump announcing a 30-day pause in tariffs that were to take effect today. The temporary reprieve halts — at least for now — a continental trade war that economists on both sides of the border warned would raise prices. Trump’s decision meant Canada and the provinces also halted their moves to retaliate including with tariffs and bans on U.S. alcohol sales north of the border. Trump on Saturday signed an order to impose 25 per cent across-the-board tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports, with a lower 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy. On Monday, following two phone calls with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Trump said the tariffs would be off the table for 30 days to see if the two countries could reach a “final economic deal.”