WFG on duties: chatter on the file? Paul Quinn
Okay. And then just noticing that you’ve got now almost U.S. $825 million on deposit hearing from some of your competitors that there’s been some chatter on that file, the softer lumber. What is your take on the current situation and how do we get to resolution?
Ray Ferris
Well, I would say, it remains certainly a frustration for the industry and for West Fraser, I think, I mean, obviously we’re on both sides of the border. We certainly do not agree with the duties. And I think that’s well documented. Paul, look, you will see chatter in the paper from time to time with industry trying to work together to develop some thoughts about how to overcome the impasse. But I can also say there’s – there really isn’t anything going on other than people talking about what could be done or what might be done and should things improve. But today the governments aren’t talking and there’s really no discussion between the U.S. and Canada. But look, we’re – we continue to want to see resolution to the duties and we’re going to look for those catalysts to try and do that for what impact West Fraser has on those decisions.
Paul Quinn
Okay. And just in the past, that sort of the legal route, whether it was through NAFTA, WTO used to really sort of spur on those discussions. Where are we at in those two legal paths?
Ray Ferris
First, Paul, I would say I’m quite involved, and I can actually tell you that as involved I am, as I’m confused about if I tried to describe the legal status of all the different things that were going on between CBD and anti-dumping. I’m sure I would get it wrong. And I mean, I think it’s out there in the public domain, and so I just don’t want to try and trip something up. I think you saw that there was a couple of recent announcements around decisions being remanded back to the Department of Commerce, but again, those immediately go on appeal and away we go again.
So I would say despite the fact that you’ll see and read things in the media and there’s – there are some decisions being made, I don’t think from a West Fraser point of view, it’s fundamentally changed. Materially where we’re at is that we’re this hasn’t moved us closer to a resolution at this standpoint. So from our perspective, it looks like this is a ways away before resolution.
"hearing from some of your competitors that there's been some chatter on that file". I wonder what he means by this.