Category: Lumber News

After rising +$2 last week, the price of benchmark softwood lumber item Western Spruce-Pine-Fir KD 2×4 #2&Btr climbed further this week, Oct 24, 2019, up +$8 to US$378 mfbm; Utility/#3 grade 2×4 gained +$8 to US$250 mfbm.

The full North America softwood lumber price list will be updated as usual first thing Friday morning Eastern time, however here is a sneak peak at benchmark WSPF prices: After dropping -$8 last week, The price of benchmark softwood lumber item Western Spruce-Pine-Fir KD 2×4 #2&Btr rose +$2 this week to US$370 mfbm; Utility/#3 regains…

The latest issue of the Western Wood Products Association’s monthly Lumber Track, for January-July 2019, shows a -0.1% decrease in US softwood lumber production volume from the same time last year, to 20,687 mmfbm. January – July softwood lumber production in Canada increased drops through most of this year, down by another -10%, to 14,720…

The US construction sector hiring rate, as measured on a twelve-month moving average basis, held steady at 5.3% in August 2019. The twelve-month moving average for layoffs ticked up to 2.5%, continuing a rising trend in recent months. Data from the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) indicate that construction job openings increased in August.…

The PPI report shows that softwood lumber prices increased +3.8% in September 2019—the index’s largest percentage increase since prices rose +4.8% in June 2018. Prices have fallen -8.7% over the last 12 months but remain nearly +15% higher than they were in 2016. Prices paid for goods used in residential construction in the US decreased…