Most softwood lumber and panel prices dropped significantly on a holiday-shortened week in Canada, as customers were well stocked with wood and producers faced shrinking order files. All of which is normal for this time of year.

The North American construction framing dimension softwood lumber market has found even footing at this mid-summer 2022, according to Madison's Lumber Reporter. Prices on almost all lumber and panel items remained flat, with some benchmark commodities rising slightly.

Lumber prices jumped more than 7% on June 30 to $638 per thousand board feet, according to Markets Insider.

VANCOUVER, B.C. -- After dropping in prices in recent weeks, many softwood lumber prices leveled off in mid-June as a supply-demand balance seemed to have been reached, according to Madison's Lumber Reporter. 

In a May 19 report, Market Insider found that lumber prices fell to new lows in 2022 as April's existing home sales hit the lowest level since the start of the pandemic.

Western S-P-F producers in the United States reduced asking prices on some of their more commonly-traded commodities in an effort to entice circumspect customers

US housing starts in February were up, indeed reaching highs not seen since mid-2006, however building permits were down compared to the previous month.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine, lumber prices have jumped 14% to $1,452, putting them just below the all-time peak of $1,711 per thousand board feet recorded last May, according to a report in Market Insider and other publications. 

VANCOUVER, B.C. – Softwood lumber prices remained volatile as the industry faced weather, supply chain, governmental issues, and other external factors, according to Madison's Lumber Prices index. The analyst firm found that the second half of 2021 underwent “relentless” lumber price increases. In addition, North American construction framing dimension softwood lumber prices reversed their rises during January 2022. Ongoing strong demand, however, served to prop prices up again at the beginning of February.    

Despite the Covid pandemic still stubbornly hanging on, it was the roller-coaster of material prices and lumber availability that dominated the headlines in this year’s ranking of the Top 10 Stories of 2021.