U.S. dropping Obama-era duties on supercalendered paper imports from Canada

The U.S. Department of Commerce says it will end countervailing duties on supercalendered paper from Canada that have been in place since 2015.

The move comes after Verso Corp., the main U.S. producer of the glossy paper stock, told the U.S. commerce secretary in March that it was no longer interested in continuing with the duties following a settlement with some Canadian producers.

The U.S. Department of Commerce says the duties will be revoked retroactively to their start date in August 2015 and will be repaid to companies with interest.

Montreal-based Resolute Forest Products Inc. says it has paid $60 million in cash deposits from the duties and expects to know the timing of its refund in the coming days.

The decision by the U.S. comes a day after the World Trade Organization ruled largely in favour of Canada in the dispute over perceived subsidies on supercalendered paper, which is mainly used in magazines, catalogues, corporate brochures and advertising inserts.

The settlement reached in March included Irving Paper Ltd. and Port Hawkesbury Paper paying Verso Corp. as much as US$42 million.

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