SYP

Southern yellow pine was mixed again this week. Buyers who covered their near-term needs the prior week, throttled back on new orders.

#1 grade held closest to flat: narrow 2x4s were flat to up around $5/mbf, while the wides gave back ground, with 2×8 and 2×10 off another $10 to $15/mbf. 2×12 was close to flat.

#2 grade split harder by width. 2×4 and 2×6 — actually firmed, up $5 to $15/mbf. But #2 wides kept sliding: 2×8 down $10/mbf, and 2×10 was the softest item of the week in either grade, down $15 to $20/mbf.

With 2x4s and 2x6s firming up it could show that the trend is shifting. We would expect most prices to begin increasing this week and next.

Low grade (#3/#4) was close to flat, down just a touch.

SPF

Spruce-pine-fir eased modestly this week — down around $5/mbf depending on width, a much smaller pullback than last week’s sharper drop. 2×6 held closest to flat; 2×4 saw most of the softness.

Studs, the weak spot for weeks, look like they may have found a bottom. The softest item out there — 2×4-9s — held steady after weeks of declines, and western stud prices firmed late in the week.

Deep discounting has mostly dried up in the delivered U.S. markets, though a handful of items in the Canadian markets (Toronto, Montreal) softened slightly. Overall, a steadier tone than we’ve seen the last few weeks.

OSB

OSB was flat again this week — essentially a wash on the panel composite. Demand stayed soft up north, but tightening mill supply out of the Southeast and North Central pushed a few grades up on a limited basis.