Trade - An American-imposed tariff on Canadian spring wheat exports has been officially lifted, following a North American Free Trade Agreement decision late last year, the Canadian Wheat Board said Wednesday.
The CWB said U.S. Customs headquarters in Washington, D.C., notified all American ports of entry last week that imports of hard red spring wheat from Canada are no longer subject to any duties.
The tariff -- set at 14 per cent and later lowered to 11 per cent -- has all but closed the border to Canada's largest crop since 2003.
The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) determined in 2003 that imports of Canadian wheat were injuring the U.S. wheat sector, a decision the Canadian Wheat Board appealed to a NAFTA panel.
The ITC reversed its decision in 2005 after NAFTA ordered it to reconsider. The North Dakota Wheat Commission objected, but the NAFTA panel made a final ruling last December that cleared the way for the removal of the tariff.Calgary Herald
