OTCPK:TOUBF - Post by User
Post by
msillusionon Nov 14, 2008 10:00pm
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Post# 15588101
Russia Cools the Outlook of TRE
Russia Cools the Outlook of TRERussian's delay to levy 80% tax on log export takes the shine from TRE's outlook.
Canadians lobby China over timber
14 Nov 2008/National Post/BY NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE
BEIJING • Canadian forestry leaders attempted to strike an optimistic tone yesterday after Vladimir Putin, the Russian Prime Minister, dashed hopes of a mad Chinese rush for Canadian lumber.
Russia had planned to levy an 80% tax on log exports starting on Jan. 1, 2009, but Mr. Putin said yesterday the global financial crisis, as well as pressure from Scandinavian powers who depend on cheap Russian logs, had convinced the country to delay the tax by nine to 12 months.
Canadian lumber makers had hoped the tax would choke off the huge volume of Russian logs flowing into China — more than 60% of China’s log imports — and create a fierce new hunger for Canadian wood. The delay came as another in a series of bitter disappointments for the industry, which is in the midst of the worst turmoil it has seen in decades thanks to the U.S. housing meltdown.
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