Trump Orders Investigation Into Lumber Ahead of Likely Tariffs

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(Bloomberg) – US President Donald Trump orders the Ministry of Commerce to launch an investigation into the national security damage that was put forward by wood imports, and to lay the legal basis for the new definitions he pledged.

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The investigation will discuss whether exporters such as Canada, Germany and Brazil throw wood in the American market at the expense of American economic prosperity and national security, according to a senior administration official, the journalists briefed on the condition that his identity is not disclosed.

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Officials will study the impact of foreign government subsidies, predators, and derived products – especially if countries like China are artificially floundering the price of goods such as kitchen cabinet. Trump has previously said that he is looking forward to a 25 % tariff on wood in the near future, but the official said the investigation may also lead to organizational changes to reduce wood harvesting.

Trump simultaneously signs an executive order, entitled “Editing our Forests”, which will focus on simplifying the process of organizational permit, allowing more wood rescue harvesting.

The official refused to determine the time it is expected to take the investigation, but indicated that the Ministry of Commerce would move quickly. The official also refused to say whether the final tariff that resulted from the investigation is added to the current Trump plans to impose the so -called mutual definitions on other countries, or a 25 % tax on Canada and Mexico to reach next week.

The movement on woods serve double political purposes for the president. Trump has long blamed forest maintenance instead of climate change in a series of forest fires in California, including the last burnings that jumped large areas in the Los Angeles region.

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Wooden timber was decades -old in the commercial relationship between Ottawa and Washington, where the American industry accused Canadian producers of throwing low -priced wood on the border. The United States argues that Canada supports its records by imposing cheap fees on the harvest, and has repeatedly slapped duties on Canadian wood over the years.

Last summer, the United States raises on Canadian wood to 14.54 %, a level that has already pressure on production there and raised concerns about the future feasibility of some northern leaflets.

However, the customs tariff by 25 % – especially if it is added over the existing duties – would cause economic pain on both sides of the border. The production of American wood was rising, but the country was still dependent on imports to meet the demand. The largest soft wood imports in the United States come from Canada, according to the National Association for Home Buildings.

Trump also signed an executive lawsuit in February to direct the Ministry of Commerce to study potential copper definitions, a step of senior management officials that have been necessary to help renew the local production of decisive metals of modern economies. Officials have argued with the abolition and excessive global markets that affected the production of local copper, leaving arms systems and other critical products that depend on imports.

– With the help of Brian Platt.

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