OSB

We wanted to start this week’s news with OSB. Although the price in OSB has seemingly not changed in over 15 weeks (since last October), we are expecting prices to begin to rise in March.

OSB hit a 5 year low back in September and has not wavered much at all from these rock bottom prices. It is clear that mills are selling it as low as they can; the question though, is when will prices begin to go up? Buying when prices are at their bottom is the name of the game in lumber buying and selling; and having a clear view of where the bottom actually is, doesn’t happen often. If you are interested in knowing where prices are for truckloads of OSB to your area, we would be happy to assist you in this!  

SYP

As anticipated, SYP had its second week in a row of decreases. After spending most of December and all of January increasing over $60/mbf on average, the SYP market is finally softening, and we do not expect this soft spot in the market to last long.

If you are needing to know when to stock up for the spring, we would suggest waiting until closer to the end of February.

2×6 and 2x8s came down around $15/mbf

2x4s came down $10/mbf, except on 16’ lengths as they are remaining tight due to constant demand.

2x10s and 2x12s on the other hand did increase around $5/mbf. Remember that 2x12s have been the anomaly as they have only risen around $15/mbf this winter, so it is still a good time to buy them. We would especially suggest waiting to buy 2x10s if possible as they are likely to be a few weeks behind in prices softening.

SPF

SPF has now had 2 weeks of no price changes after increasing through December and January as well. It is hard to tell just how much prices will drop in February, especially after holding steady two weeks in a row. What prices do this week should give us more insight into just how much decreasing SPF prices will do in the weeks to come.