Southeastern Softwood lumber providers reported their markets as good.
A sawmill representative in Georgia said his market is exactly that – good. “We’re new to the Pine business,” he stated. “We’ve been in it almost two years. I would say it’s been very successful.”
Looking back several months, he observed that “production and labor have improved, and the sales prices have not improved.”
He handles Southern Yellow Pine in most grades in two-inch and six-inch thickness.
“We can still sell what we’re producing but obviously the prices have come down pretty drastically over the last 30 days,” he stated.
He sells lumber to wholesalers, lumberyards and end users. “Overall, they’re incredibly busy,” he remarked. “A huge pallet manufacturer told me they had one of their busiest months ever recently. All the truss manufacturers we talk to have a year’s worth of backlog. They’re not even taking any more orders at this time. The modular home manufacturers seem to be really busy.”
“Absolutely” transportation is a problem, he commented. It’s hard to get trucks and the prices have increased. “The trucking manufacturers are canceling orders. We had 40 trucks ordered; they cancelled half of them. Used trucks cost more than the new ones. If you get the trucks, you can’t keep enough drivers in them. You go to hire contractors, and the price is high due to increased fuel prices.”
A lumber provider in Mississippi also said his market is good. “Our business is still very good,” he stated. “There is no change, in that respect, from what it’s been for two years or more. We have a lot of demand from our customers, and we’re able to meet that demand. At the same time, the order files have shortened. “Nevertheless, our sales are considerably higher than they were two years ago. We are shipping more volume. For over two years, month over month, every single month our shipments have gone up. It’s amazing. It’s stunning. We’ve added a couple of salespeople who are doing a good job of getting new customers. We’ve gotten new customers. Our business has grown with existing customers, also. That’s a fantastic place to be. In 42 years, there has never been a time in my career when this was the case, month over month, year over year continual upturn in shipments.”
Therefore, compared to six months earlier, his market is the same, he said.
He sells all Southern Yellow Pine, mostly No. 2 Common or lower in 2×4 to 12×12. He provides lumber to industrial customers who “take a product we ship them and use it in their operations. Among our customers, we’ve seen no slowdown in any segment that we serve.”
Transportation isn’t an issue for him. “I’ve got an employee who handles all of our logistics,” he noted. “He books trucks and vans for us all day, every day. We are seeing some lanes being difficult. Fuel prices are much higher, so that is a component of the higher freight. There’s still a chronic shortage of drivers. That continues to make freight more expensive. However, with our logistics employee, transportation works out well for us.”
Another Mississippi lumberman said his market is “a little bit better” than it was in prior months. “The prices in Softwood are dropping and there’s a little more availability than there has been in the last year or so,” he noted. “Our ability to get Softwood is easier than it has been. In our market, it’s easier to get lumber than it is to sell it. Before, it was easier to sell than to get. Still, our market might be ‘a tad bit better’ than in recent history.”
He sells Southern Yellow Pine in industrial grade, No. 3 Common and No. 4 Common to pallet and crate manufacturers. He believes their sales are good because, “We don’t have any trouble selling to them if we’ve got the material.”
In transportation, “We haven’t had any trouble except for increasing rates.”
An Alabama lumber provider said, “Sales have been good. There’s still a lot of activity on the multifamily front. There’s definitely a ton of interest out there. It has slowed a little bit with the prices of lumber lowering. We see a lot of people sitting on the sidelines getting ready to pull the trigger when they feel the time is right. Yet, the multifamily segment seems pretty strong.”
Compared to a few months ago, he said, “I would say it’s about the same, as far as sales are going. It’s been a really strong market over the last year and a half.”
Ninety percent of the lumber he offers is No. 2 Common Southern Yellow Pine. He also sells No. 3 Common SYP and No. 2 Common Spruce. His lumber comes in 2×4 to big timbers.
He sells to end users, “mostly general contractors or sub-contractors working on multifamily projects. Over the last year or so, it’s been strong. I’ve been doing this for 10 years. It seems like every year they build more and more larger apartment complexes. Prices have risen. I’m assuming the bottom line for them is good since they keep building them like they are.
“Transportation is a nightmare,” he commented. “The prices are high and there’s not a lot of trucks out there. The same is true with the rail car situation.”
