SYP

Southern Pine went down again this week, and has been falling steadily since mid-September. Most #1 and #2 items dropped around $10 to $15. Supply is outrunning demand across the South, and mills are sitting on growing inventory. Until mills work through their inventory, expect prices to continue to stay soft.

Low grade prices are also decreasing. Reports of large volume of 2×6 #4 flooded the market this week with most sellers seeing who could move it the cheapest. However, freight is eating the difference with diesel averaging over $6 a gallon, and truck rates up around 30% in just three weeks.

SPF

SPF went down again, with most items down around $5 to $10. 2×4 16′ was the one item that held, unchanged on the week and still the strongest piece in the market. 2×6 16′ was one of the weaker items, down about $10. Studs slipped around $5.

The Commerce Department announced final duty rates on Canadian lumber this week, and they came in about 10% lower for most mills. The market basically shrugged it off. Demand is low and buyers aren’t in a hurry, so we expect SPF to keep drifting lower in the near term.

OSB

OSB was flat this week. Mills are holding their prices with order files out into November, and buyers are mostly buying only what their contracts cover.