President Trump orders investigation into lumber imports in response to tariffs

Timber Market News-- according toBloombergAccording to reports, President Trump signed an executive order on March 2, 2025, instructing the Commerce Department to immediately launch an investigation into the harm posed to national security by lumber imports, laying the legal foundation for the new tariffs he promised.

The investigation will assess whether exporters such as Canada, Germany and Brazil are dumping lumber into the U.S. market at the expense of U.S. economic prosperity and national security. An anonymous senior administration official briefing reporters said the investigation will examine the impact of foreign government subsidies, predatory trade practices and derivative products, especially whether countries like China are artificially keeping prices low on goods such as kitchen cabinets. Trump has previously said he was considering imposing tariffs on lumber, but the official noted that the investigation could also lead to regulatory changes that ease rules on timber harvesting.

The official declined to say how long the investigation is expected to take, but said the Commerce Department would act quickly, according to Bloomberg. The official also declined to say whether tariffs resulting from the investigation would stack up with Trump's existing plans to impose so-called reciprocal tariffs on other countries or the 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico scheduled to begin on March 4.

LumberFlow Expert Interpretation

The investigation will have an immediate impact on the North American market. First, if the results of the investigation support the imposition of new tariffs, the North American lumber supply chain will face greater pressure, which may lead to the closure of some lumber mills and form transportation bottlenecks.

Secondly, if the supply of timber in North America decreases, Chinese buyers may turn to Russian timber, forming a demand substitution pattern. Considering that North America's softwood timber supply demand in 2024 is about 20.3 billion board feet, and trade between the United States and Canada accounts for 38%, this change will have a profound impact on the global timber market.