VANCOUVER – Responding to the recent decision by the U.S. International Trade Commission [ITC] on softwood lumber, Susan Yurkovich, president of the BC Lumber Trade Council, said there is no doubt the process is biased toward the U.S. industry.

The statement issued by the B.C. trade groups reads: “The ruling today, while not unexpected, is completely without merit. The ITC finding of ‘injury’, despite the current record-setting profitability of the U.S. lumber industry, makes it very clear that this was not an objective evaluation of the facts.

There can be no doubt that this process is biased in favour of the U.S. industry. To our knowledge, the ITC has never before reached an affirmative decision of injury when an industry was enjoying the most profitable period in its history, which is the case today for the U.S. lumber industry.”

Yurkovich said the group will fight this latest decision and initiate appeals. She is confident the ITC decision will be overturned. “We are confident that this latest decision by the ITC will again be reversed. The U.S. Coalition’s claims of injury ring particularly hollow given the extraordinary financial performance that the U.S. lumber industry is enjoying, and given that Canadian imports are at a lower level today than at the levels deemed non-injurious under both the 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement and by the ITC itself in the last round of litigation.”

B.C. is the largest Canadian exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S.