Lumber demand is expected to remain strong during the recession in the US

Posted on May 11, 2022   |  

• The ban on lumber imports from Russia can increase demand for Canadian lumber in “non-China” Asian countries, however, the U.S. is expected to remain strong despite an economic contraction due to an “underbuild” of 4 million housing units.
• Lumber prices are expected to touch the high of $500 per thousand board feet range in 2023, which is low compared to last year's prices, but still very high prices relative to history.
• In 2021, U.S. housing starts were expected to be 2.2 million, but there were only 1.6 million new housing starts, leading to an underbuild.