US sawmills produced 27.66 billion board feet (bbf) of softwood lumber in the first 11 months of 2013 – up 5.7 per cent from 26.161 bbf a year earlier, according to the Western Wood Products Association’s Lumber Track February 10.
Western US sawmills accounted for 12.534 bbf of the monthly total, a gain of 7.5 per cent from 11.659 bbf a year earlier, while Southern US sawmills contributed 13.787 bbf, which was 4.2 per cent higher than the 13.235 bbf produced in the 11-month period of 2012.
In November alone, production was 2.253 bbf – down 1.7 per cent year-over year from 2.292 bbf, and 19.1 per cent lower than output in October of 2.785 bbf.
Canadian sawmills produced 22.726 bbf of softwood lumber in the 11 months – an increase of 5.4 per cent year-over-year from 21.569 bbf.
Sawmills in British Columbia produced 11.821 bbf of the total – up 3.1 per cent from 11.469 bbf a year earlier, while sawmills east of the Rockies accounted for 10.904 bbf, up 8 per cent from the prior year (10.101 bbf).
North America Lumber Production
In November 2013, Canadian production was 2.021 bbf, a gain of 0.2 per cent compared with the same month of 2012 , 2.017 bbf, but 9.3 per cent below output in October, of 2.228 bbf, said the WWPA Monday.
Sawmills in British Columbia accounted for 1.014 bbf of November’s production, a drop of 1.5 per cent from a volume of 1.029 a year earlier, and down 10.1 per cent from the previous month’s output of 1.127 bbf.
Canadian softwood lumber consumption was 6.911 bbf in the first 11 months of 2013, a drop of 8.2 per cent from 7.531 bbf a year earlier. The volume for November alone was 522 mmbf – down 23.6 per cent year-over-year from 684 mmbf, and 18.1 per cent below consumption in October 2013 of 638 mmbf.
Sawmills in the western US contributed 1.066 bbf to the November 2013 total, up 1.6 per cent from output a year earlier, 1.049 bbf, but down 15.6 per cent from October’s 1.263 bbf. Mills in the South produced 1.078 bbf in November – a decline of 4.8 per cent from the prior year, 1.132 bbf, and 22.3 per cent lower than output in October of 1.387 bbf.
In the 11-month period, softwood lumber consumption climbed 8.2 per cent year-over-year to 36.492 bbf from 33.738 bbf. In November alone, consumption was 3.081 bbf – a gain of 2.2per cent year-over-year from 3.013 bbf, but down 13.2 per cent from the month before, 3.547 bbf.