Softwood lumber production in the US grows, while Canadian production falls

Softwood lumber production in the US grows, while Canadian production falls

US sawmills produce 8.557 bbf of softwood lumber in first three months of 2018, up 2.7% year-over-year, while output by Canadian mills drops 2.4% to 7.074; production by sawmills in British Columbia in March at 1.073 bbf is down 10.4% from last year.

U.S. sawmills produced 8.557 billion board ft. (bbf) of softwood lumber in the first three months of 2018, an increase of 2.7% from 8.333 bbf in the previous year, the Western Wood Products Assn. (WWPA) reported in its latest Lumber Track report.

Of the three-month total, Western U.S. sawmills accounted for 3.688 bbf, up 7.7% from 3.424 bbf a year earlier, while Southern sawmills contributed 4.466 bbf – down 1.1% from 4.517 bbf last year.

In March alone, U.S. sawmills produced 2.915 bbf, a year-over-year drop of 2.4% from 2.987 bbf. Compared with February’s output of 2.725 bbf, production in March was up 7.0%.

Western sawmills contributed 1.262 bbf to March’s production volume, up 0.7% from 1.254 bbf in March 2017, and up 9.1% from February’s output of 1.157 bbf.

Southern sawmills produced 1.516 bbf in March, down 4.8% from 1.593 bbf a year earlier, but up 5.3% from the 1.440 bbf produced in February.

Apparent U.S. softwood lumber consumption was 11.496 bbf in the first three months of 2018, down 4.1% from 11.986 bbf in the same period last year. Consumption in March was 4.005 bbf, a drop of 5.6% from 4.242 bbf in the previous year, but up 11.4% from 3.594 bbf in February 2018.

Canadian softwood lumber production/consumption

Canadian sawmills produced 7.074 bbf in the first three months, a 2.4% decline from 7.249 bbf a year earlier. Sawmills in British Columbia accounted for 3.137 bbf of the three-month total, down 5.8% from 3.331 bbf a year earlier, while sawmills east of the Rockies contributed 3.937 bbf, a 0.5% gain from 3.918 bbf in the same period of 2017.

In March, Canadian production was 2.448 bbf, down 4.9% from 2.575 bbf in March 2017, but up 11.3% from 2.200 bbf in February 2018.

Sawmills in British Columbia contributed 1.073 bbf to March’s output, a 10.4% year-over-year drop from 1.198 bbf, but up 13.2% from 948 million board ft. (mmbf) in February.

Sawmills east of the Rockies produced 1.375 bbf in March, down 0.2% from 1.377 bbf in March 2017, but up 9.9% from the previous month’s output of 1.252 bbf.

Apparent Canadian softwood lumber consumption advanced 16.9% in the first three months of 2018 to 2.624 bbf from 2.244 bbf a year earlier. In the month of March, apparent Canadian consumption was 805 mmbf, up 9.3% from 737 mmbf in March 2017, but down 6.1% from February’s 857 mmbf.

U.S. and Canada utilization/inventories

U.S. production as a percentage of practical capacity averaged 86% in the first three months, up from 84% in the same period last year. In Canada, the percentage was 87%, down from 89% in the first three months of 2017.

U.S. inventories climbed 1.2% in March to 2.959 bbf from 2.924 bbf a year earlier, while in Canada, inventories increased by 13.8% to 3.643 bbf from 3.201 bbf.

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