The markets for Softwood lumber in the Midwest are full of activity.
An Iowa lumber provider said his company’s interactions with customers are “busy – through the roof.” He added: “It’s probably busier than it was six months ago. That’s better for us.”
He provides engineered wood products to distribution yards. “They’re all really busy and having trouble finding material,” he stated.
Transportation is not a problem currently, he observed.
In Kansas City, a lumberman said the markets for his products are “very strong. Demand far outweighs supply in multiple categories. About the only thing that could slow it down is a brutal winter, and we haven’t had that yet.”
The market is “probably the same” as it was six months ago, he stated. “It seems like maybe it’s quieter, though. That’s just because the supply continues to tighten up on all fronts, but as far as home starts, it’s pretty similar.”
This lumber provider offers Spruce, green Doug Fir and Western Red Cedar. “Sales in the Kansas City metro area are predominantly in green Doug Fir,” he noted. Sales of these materials are to dealers. “Every last one of them can’t get enough lumber,” he said. “I had a dealer tell me yesterday, where they would normally carry from 120 to 150 units of OSB on hand, right now they have 20. They can’t get OSB. Everybody is just hand-to-mouth. Everything’s on allocation.”
Transportation is OK presently, he stated. “The only negative factor out there currently is that no one can get enough supply. Obviously when that happens, the prices remain at record levels. No one’s going to drop the price with such a big variance between supply and demand.”
A lumber spokesman in Texas said his market is “hot – really hot.” He sells Cedar and Doug Fir, No. 1 and Better and uppers. “Cedar is impossible,” he stated. “Getting Cedar is the hardest thing. We are converting a lot of Cedar sales to Fir. We’re having great numbers every month. We have new customers calling for products they have never bought before. It’s a changing market for us.”
The market, he stated, is “probably about the same” as it was six months earlier. “I think the whole building process is starting to slow a little bit because of the cost of material. That’s what I’m hearing from all of the yards. People are starting to pull back a little bit. Material shortage is the main part of the slowdown.”
Transportation, he said, has been “pretty good.”
