Sawmill curtailments generate lumber demand as US lumber prices grew by 5% by January end

Posted on February 13, 2023   |  

For the week ended January 27, standard softwood lumber prices grew by 5% to $394 mfbm from the previous week, when it was $374 mfbm.

In B.C. and Alberta, limited supply was outrun by soaring demand generated by total curtailment announcements among large Western producers.

The sawmill shutdown and curtailment from Western Canadian producers induced a surge of demand for Western S-P-F commodities. 

Sawmill order files were mostly in the week of February 13, with prompt availability getting smaller by the day.