Ontario Business Trends September 2026 – Despite Summer Wildfires, Stability Overall In Lumber Markets
The devastating impacts of forest fires were felt across much of Canada throughout the summer. In northwestern Ontario, several communities were heavily affected, prompting widespread evacuations in Armstrong, Lac La Croix First Nation, Collins First Nation, Whitesand First Nation, Gull Bay First Nation and Lac des Mille Lacs First Nation. In Armstrong, a CN Rail crew was evacuated after their train became surrounded by fire. Emergency Management Ontario urged residents in wildfire-affected areas to evacuate south to Thunder Bay.
By mid-July, Ontario wildfire officials were responding to 160 active wildland fires, including 128 in the northwest region. Of those, 53 were out of control, eight were being held, four were under control and 63 were under observation, according to the ministry’s website. During the same period, Environment Canada placed much of northern Ontario under a severe heat warning, with humidex values reaching 40° C. The fires caused significant damage to communities and disrupted lives and livelihoods, with impacts expected to be felt for years to come.
Contacts commented at the time of this writing that Hard Maple demand and production continues to be positive, outperforming that of supply and demand seen in the Appalachian region.
Although Ash production is not as high as it used to be, reducing supply of this species, it remains stable on both domestic and export markets. Aspen was noted as maintaining its upward trend with demand outpacing production, although those who produced this species were able to move it at steady prices.
Basswood supply and demand were reported to be maintaining equilibrium throughout the summer, with some items being more available than others. The species is seeing mixed results according to areas contacted as it pertains to sales. Despite this, it is moving.
Birch markets are not performing as well as they did, with prices being volatile since the beginning of the year, and then stabilizing these past few months.
The Canadian Wood Council (CWC) announced that Rick Jeffery retired from his role as president and chief executive officer of the CWC effective June 30, 2026, following a distinguished career, advanced codes and standards, strengthened its partnership with the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC), and raised the profile of the WoodWorks program across the country.
The CWC Board of Directors appointed Derek Nighbor as president and chief executive officer, effective July 1, 2026. Nighbor also continues to serve as president and chief executive officer of FPAC. He has worked closely with CWC leadership in recent years, and his appointment reflects the importance of increased collaboration across the forest sector and wood building construction value chains to deliver on affordable housing, increase the use of Canadian wood in building construction, and strengthen the domestic industry in the face of growing geo-political and trade challenges.
Nighbor stated he was excited to get to work with the CWC and FPAC to grow their on-the-ground partnerships and to build more Canadian homes and infrastructure with Canadian wood.
On the decorative plywood side, in mid-July the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) extended the preliminary phase of its dumping and subsidy investigations into decorative and other non-structural plywood from China.
The deadline was extended to 135 days under subsection 39(1) of the Special Import Measures Act, due to the complexity of the issues, the number of parties involved and challenges in obtaining satisfactory evidence.
The investigations are examining allegations that decorative and other non-structural plywood from China is being dumped into Canada or benefiting from subsidies, and are causing injury to Canadian producers.
Under the revised schedule, the CBSA was scheduled to issue preliminary determinations—or terminate some or all investigations–by Aug. 24, 2026, with a statement of reasons to follow on Sept. 8. The evidentiary record will close Oct. 6, followed by case arguments on Oct. 13 and reply submissions on Oct. 20.
Final determinations, or termination of the investigations, are scheduled for Nov. 23, with the final statement of reasons to be released on Dec. 8.
The extension provides additional time for the CBSA to assess evidence from importers, exporters, the Chinese government and other interested parties before deciding whether provisional duties or other trade measures are warranted.
The Government of Canada is investing in workforce development through Team Canada Strong, a national initiative to recruit, train and hire 80,000 to 100,000 new Red Seal trades workers over five years to help build housing, infrastructure and defence capabilities.
In addition to the $6 billion previously announced, the government is investing an additional $2 billion over five years through new bilateral agreements with provinces and territories, with funding expected to begin in 2026-27, subject to negotiations. The initiative was a key topic at the mid-July Forum of Labour Market Ministers, where governments discussed the future of Canada’s workforce and labour market needs.
The funding will help expand training capacity, create more pathways into Red Seal trades, improve access to pre-apprenticeship and technical training, reduce barriers to training and certification, address apprenticeship waitlists, align training with in-demand trades and increase program completion rates.
By combining provincial and territorial programs with complementary federal measures, the initiative aims to improve national consistency, accelerate implementation in priority areas and address workforce gaps. The Government of Canada will continue working with provinces and territories to strengthen training systems and support the skilled trades workforce needed to build a stronger economy.
