Lumber suppliers in the Inland West region that were interviewed at the time of this writing were a mixed bag as to how their markets were fairing.
A lumber spokesperson in Colorado said that the pricing for their products has remained lower than they would like.
“Prices have stayed pretty low over the past six months. There hasn’t been any movement, we haven’t seen prices lower than they are now and we haven’t seen any sign that they will trend up.”
His company offers Spruce and Lodgepole Pine in grades No. 2 and Stud Economy and thicknesses of 2×4 and 2×6.
He noted that his company sells to wholesalers, who have mentioned that their sales are doing well.
“We don’t handle scheduling of transportation, it is up to the customer to schedule the trucks to pick up their orders, so it has been pretty hit or miss over the past few months,” he said.
An Arizonian based lumberman said that the market that he is currently selling into is doing well. “We might not be doing as good as we were six months ago, but we are still doing well.”
His company offers Southern Yellow Pine in thicknesses of 2×4, 2×6, x8, x10 and x12, as well as 4×4 and 4×6 and in grades No. 2 and Better.
“We sell to major contractors and big box stores, and they share my thoughts that sales could be better,” he said. “I think that we will start to see our sales go up once the interest rates really start to drop.”
In Montana a lumber saleswoman said that her sales have remained steady, but she has seen them become spotty.
“People are still being particular with their wanted tallies, but overall, we are shipping out just as much lumber as always.”
She noted that she believes that her sales are better than they were six months ago and that this is likely due to the fact that her customers aren’t holding on to their purchase orders as tightly as they were.
Her company offers Douglas Fir, Fir Larch, Ponderosa Pine, Engelman-Spruce-Lodgepole-Pine and White Fir. “We offer White Fir dimension in thickness of 2×4-2×12, board items in 1×4-1×12 and in grades No. 2 and Better and Nos. 3, 4 and 5. We offer Ponderosa Pine in 5/4 thickness and radius edge decking and we do 5/4 industrial shop items in Select Struct, Nos. 2 and 3, as well as Economy,” she added.
She sells to wholesalers, distribution yards and retail lumber yards. “I haven’t heard any comments as to how their sales are doing, but I can tell how their sales are for them based on the purchase orders,” she said.
She noted that transportation hasn’t been a problem for them over the past several months and while they aren’t having issues with labor at the time of this writing, they are always looking for new employees with experience in the forest products industry.
