With the U.S. election behind us, businesses in the Hardwood industry across Canada were hoping that trade relations between the two countries would improve. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was meeting with President Biden at the time of this writing. There is uncertainty still due to the COVID-19 virus as we move into 2021. With the vaccines anticipated to be received in the coming months, it is hoped that the country – as the world – will be able to move past this pandemic and return to some sense of a normal life. With this uncertainty, lumber buyers are taking a cautious approach to their purchase volumes until the outlook is a bit clearer. In early January, the Premier of Quebec initiated a curfew for all residents to aid in the fight of spiking numbers of COVID-19 cases. Many other provinces had also implemented lockdown measures as the number of cases was on the rise.
Sawmills are readily moving production, but demand is outpacing supply for most species in most areas contacted.
Ash supplies have improved, according to contacts, even though output is low, and supplies tight. Cherry is selling well with prices noted as climbing for this species.
Demand for the regionally important species, Hard Maple, is strong, with interest coming from secondary manufacturers and the U.S. due to a strong housing and renovation market. In Canada, home sales are also doing well, and the renovation market is very strong. As people are in lockdowns, they are spending more time at home, and many are focusing on renovation projects, which include kitchen cabinets, flooring, furnishings and other related Hardwood products.
Contacts commented that market conditions for Soft Maple are favorable. This is especially true for the upper grades. Wood component and cabinet plants are the big buyers for this species, as are furniture manufacturers. Again, prices are firm to higher. Prices for kiln-dried upper grades are also noted as having increased.
Oak is in great demand from flooring and truck trailer manufacturing companies. Supplies are tight for this species. Sawmills are struggling to get more White Oak logs. There is intense competition from veneer manufacturers and log exporters for availability and driving prices higher for White Oak logs. Sawmills are finding it difficult to compete. Industry contacts stated it is a similar situation for green and kiln-dried White Oak lumber. Demand from flooring manufacturers and overseas wholesalers and end users is outpacing supplies.
The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) expects the national average home price will rise 9.1 percent to $620,400 in 2021, with sales also rising everywhere but in Ontario. CREA forecasts home prices to either hold steady or climb in all regions across the country, citing economic improvements from the lows of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The strength of demand, particularly for larger single-family properties, will drive the average price higher as potential buyers compete for the most desirable properties,” CREA notes.
CREA has one of the most bullish forecasts, as the industry tries to understand a record-setting market against a backdrop of lingering unemployment and effects of the COVID- 19 pandemic.
Re/Max is predicting 2021 price increases of 4 percent to 6 percent, while Royal LePage is forecasting a 5.5 percent price rise.
CREA expects national home sales to increase by 7.2 percent to around 584,000 units in 2021. All provinces except Ontario are forecast to see increased sales activity in 2021, as low interest rates and improving economic fundamentals allow people to get into the markets where homes are available for sale.
“Ontario has seen strong demand for several years, particularly outside of Toronto, which has eroded active supply in the province. This shortage is expected to limit sales activity in 2021. The strength of demand, particularly for larger single-family properties, will drive the average price higher as potential buyers compete for the most desirable properties,” CREA noted.
With prices skyrocketing in Ottawa and other large cities, it has made it a sellers’ market, with costs of homes sold selling some $40,000 to $100,000 or more over the asking price. This does not seem to have slowed down the renovation projects by purchasers of these homes, however.
The Canadian Institute of Forestry/ Institute forestier du Canada (CIFIFC) and the Centre for Social Intelligence (CSI) announced the official launch of Free to Grow in Forestry, a microsite that communicates to all stakeholders in the forest sector the resources developed through the Gender Equity in Canada’s Forest Sector National Action Plan.
The National Action Plan is a three-year initiative spearheaded by the CIF-IFC and the CSI, with strategic guidance from a National Steering Committee of forest sector leaders from government, industry, academia, Indigenous, and nonprofit organizations to achieve gender equality and meaningful inclusion of women, Indigenous peoples, and new Canadians at all levels, from technical to executive level positions, in the forest sector. The Free to Grow in Forestry microsite is a culmination of this effort and will share the actions undertaken in this initiative including, but not limited to, communication “shareables” that in dividuals and organizations are encouraged to utilize in their spheres of influence.
Visit the Free to Grow in Forestry microsite to learn more about this initiative.
