Softwood Lumber Shipments by Canada Dropped 1.7% in 2017

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The results of the FEA Canada/ WOOD MARKETS’ annual survey indicates subdued production trends by major US and Canadian producers, despite soaring lumber prices. The survey features top 20 Canadian and U.S. lumber producers. Out of the top 40 companies, 8 Canadian companies and 6 U.S. companies reported production declines, the survey said.

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The Canadian softwood lumber shipments have declined marginally by 1.7% to total 28.041 Billion Bf in 2017. The shipments had totaled 28.521 Million Bf in 2016. Although the report highlights several other factors that contributed to the drop in shipments, the implementation of import duties into the US is being cited as the main reason. The shipments by the top 10 Canadian producers declined by 1.4% over the year from 16.388 Billion Bf in 2016 to 16.159 Billion Bf in 2017. The share of top 10 Canadian companies in the overall shipments remained more or less unchanged at 57.6% in 2017.

The top five Canadian producers in 2017 were West Fraser, Canfor, Resolute FP, Tolko and J.D. Irving. West Fraser reported a major U.S. acquisition during the year, purchasing six sawmills from Gilman Lumber.

The total U.S. lumber shipments surged higher by 3.7% in 2017 to total 33.861 Million Bf. This is when compared with the shipments of 32.644 Billion Bf in 2016. The shipments by the top 10 companies were up by 4.8% from 16.959 Billion Bf in 2016 to 17.771 Billion Bf in 2017. The top 10 companies accounted for 52.5% share of total shipments by the U.S. during the year. The strong lumber price trend that prevailed during the year resulted in at least a dozen of new sawmill projects planned for the U.S. South.

The top five U.S. producers during the previous year were Weyerhaeuser, Georgia-Pacific, West Fraser, Sierra Pacific and Interfor. The combined production by these companies totaled 12.5 Billion Bf, representing nearly 37% of all U.S. lumber shipments during the year.