Madison’s Lumber Reporter Published by Keta Kosman · 31 mins · This week Madison’s Lumber Reporter printed down on benchmark WSPF KD 2×4 #2&Btr #softwood #lumber prices by quite a bit. The most-often comment from sources was “prices tanking”. Now is the start of the annual seasonal curtailments in Quebec, and the forest fire ban…

Mentioned briefly in last week’s issue of your Madison’s Lumber Reporter, the Conference Board of Canada‘s latest Canadian Outlook Bulletin, released July 9, calls for the national economy to grow by +1.8 per cent in 2018–19 in the wake of a +3 per cent gain last year. “An easing pace of consumer spending, potential breakup…

Construction material prices in the US rose another +0.8% in June and are +9.6% higher than they were at the same time one year ago, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data release Wednesday. June represents the latest month associated with rapidly rising construction input prices. Nonresidential…

Conifex Timber, out of Vancouver, BC, announced Monday that it has completed the acquisition of the Suwannee sawmill in Cross City, Florida and the Caddo River sawmill in Glenwood Arkansas. As a result of this acquisition, our total annual lumber production capacity has increased by approximately 50% to 1.1 billion board feet and our total…

At close Thursday, softwood lumber futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange launched upward $36 to US$584 but on minuscule volume traded. The looming contract close, at end of day Friday, sent just a few players into very high prices for their immediate needs. The September contract was trading at a more moderate $520 on lukewarm…

A flurry of news releases last week from many sources have started to shed light on the economic effects of these ongoing, expanding, rounds of tariffs started by the USA between increasing numbers of countries. Trade Barriers and Confusion are Wreaking Havoc for Manufacturers GRAPH CREDIT: [AFP via Straits Times] Just Friday a new flurry…

The US ISM manufacturing index, released Monday by the Institute for Supply Management: June 2018 Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®, indicated expansion in June. The PMI was at 60.2% in June, up from 58.7% in May. The employment index was at 56.0%, down from 56.3% last month, and the new orders index was at 63.5%,…

Explained Statistics Canada Wednesday last week: On June 1, 2018, the United States implemented additional tariffs on selected Canadian steel and aluminum products exported to the United States. The additional tariff rates are 25% and 10% respectively. According to Statistics Canada’s international merchandise trade customs-based data, in 2017, the export value of aluminum products that are subject to the 10% rate…