Editor
Throughout the Southeast region, lumber suppliers had mixed reviews when asked about how their market was faring at the time of this writing.
A lumber salesman, when asked about the company’s South Carolina location, had the most positive response, saying, “It’s moderate.” Despite this, he claimed that they are doing worse than six months ago.
He said that the company is “not a typical Softwood mill for Yellow Pine,” which they offer in 4/4 and 8/4 thickness.
The company sells to industrial businesses, treaters and exporters in addition to moulding plants and re-manufacturers. The lumber they sell is sold as far south as Alabama west to Nebraska and as far north as Maine, as well as overseas customers in Africa, Europe and the Middle East.
In Mississippi, a lumber spokesperson said that the market has been “pretty flat” and that it’s slower than six months ago.
The company predominantly offers 2×4 and 2×6 in Southern Yellow Pine.
He said that they sell, “mostly to pallet folks.”
In response to the question on whether the company’s customers had any comments about the current market for their own products, he mentioned, “I think everybody is pretty slow all over, except for one or two places that are pretty big.”
As for transportation, he claimed that in some parts of the country, “trucks are a little bit hard to find.”
A lumber salesperson in Louisiana shares the sentiments of the spokesperson from Mississippi, emphasizing that at the time of this writing, the market is not great and that business is not at the level it was six months ago.
The company specializes in Southern Yellow Pine, strictly selling 2-inch in No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 Common.
He stated that they “sell to the whole gamut,” listing off traders, retailers and wholesalers as their clientele.
Regarding the state of transportation and other factors that may be negatively effecting the business, he blamed the current economy, connecting it to a variety of set-backs. The first was a customer that had six stores who was purchasing 10 loads a week from them several months ago but is now down to purchasing only one or two loads a month. He also added that, “a lot of people that I deal with are having to cut people back.” Trucking is also “tough from time to time” but that just two weeks ago, he had “three incoming calls about lumber and 31 incoming calls from truckers looking for loads.” On the day of this interview, he had “two incoming calls about lumber, but the callers were just checking when their loads were going to ship.”
