The Financial Post reports in its Saturday, Feb. 3, edition that the federal government is lashing out at the U.S. Commerce Department over plans to raise duties on Canadian softwood lumber. A Canadian Press dispatch to the Post reports that International Trade Minister Mary Ng says the U.S. has signalled it intends to raise duties to 13.86 per cent, up from 8.05 per cent. Ms. Ng calls the move disappointing and unwarranted. It is the latest salvo in a bilateral back-and-forth that Ottawa has described as a drag on efforts to improve the cost and supply of housing. Last month, Ms. Ng vowed to contest a U.S. International Trade Commission decision to keep the duties in place. She says Canada will fight the duties by every means available, including litigation through existing trade agreements, as well as the World Trade Organization and the U.S. Court of International Trade. She says Canada is "extremely disappointed" in the latest finding by the Commerce Department. She sayd, "This measure is entirely unwarranted." At the same time, she says, the federal government stands ready to negotiate a resolution to the dispute that has dogged the Canada-U.S. relationship for decades.