Boarder Wars

According to NAHB economist Paul Emrath, the newly legislated duties of roughly 21% on Canadian lumber shipping into the U.S. will result in increased prices that builders pay for Canadian softwood, and in the short term will help U.S.-based softwood lumber producers. But in the long-term, builders and ultimately consumers will pay higher prices for lumber, which will lead to a reduced volume of new residential construction. And that’s where it gets ugly, as the NAHB estimates that the bottom line impact of these effects in 2018 will be a net loss of
* $576.9 million in wages and salaries for U.S. workers,
* $404.0 million in taxes and other revenue for governments in the U.S.,
* 9,370 full-time U.S. jobs.
Builder magazine editor John McManus breaks it all down.