The Canadian government filed a notice of challenge Monday under the dispute settlement system of the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. Ng said in a media statement that the tariffs hurt Canadian businesses and workers, but also serve as a tax on U.S. consumers who are already facing inflation and supply chain issues. The U.S. halved its anti-dumping and countervailing duty rate earlier this month to 8.59 percent from 17.61 percent, but Ng signaled that Canada would continue to fight the measures. The gist of the US argument is that log fees charged by provinces for timber harvested from Crown land are akin to subsidies, since US producers must instead pay market rates. Ng said Canada is willing to work towards a negotiated solution to the long-running dispute.
