- Lumber prices continued their sharp recent climb after West Fraser Timber (OTCPK:WFTBF) said it planned to close a mill in British Columbia and eliminate a shift at another, curtailing 314M board ft. of production annually.
- Lumber futures settled +4.4% today to $409.40 per 1,000 board ft. on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, capping a 34% rise so far this month; until the recent surge, lumber prices have been in the doldrums since collapsing from a record of $639 reached in May 2018.
- More than 1B total board feet of production out of western Canada has been curtailed in recent weeks by mill owners, but West Fraser's big move announced late yesterday was the one the lumber market had awaited.
- In all, at least six lumber producers in British Columbia, including West Fraser, Canfor (OTCPK:CFPZF) and Interfor (OTC:IFSPF), have said they would cut output this year.
- Other relevant tickers include WY, PCH, RFP, LPX, OSB, OTCPK:WFSTF