International Forest Products (Interfor) has reported net earnings of C$3.3m for the first quarter of 2002.
The results include a C$5.5m pre-tax provision for the countervailing and antidumping duties imposed by US Department of Commerce, which Interfor slammed as ‘totally unwarranted’.
Duncan Davies, president and chief executive officer for Inter for, said: ‘In our view, the ongoing dispute and the prospect of additional litigation is not in the best interests of the US or Canadian industries.
‘We strongly support the concept of a negotiated settlement and are hopeful the responsible parties will resume discussions in the next few weeks.’
Sales increased from C$175m in the fourth quarter of 2001 to C$180m in the first quarter, while lumber production jumped from 157 million bd ft to 190 million bd feet.
Interfor’s US market was strong with prices for ‘bell-wether’ structural products increasing by more than US$45 per thousand bd ft. But the Japanese market continues to be affected by poor economic conditions and competition from European suppliers.
