Southern Yellow Pine Lumber Prices Spiked, Then Fell

Charlotte, N.C. - Southern Yellow Pine lumber prices increased in March. The following figure shows composite lumber prices from January 2010 to year to date 2012 from Forest2Market’s weekly lumber market report, Mill2Market. A comparison of March results to 2010 and 2011 follows.

Southern Yellow Pine Lumber Prices Spiked, Then Fell

This month’s chart shows that price increased by 12.5 percent throughout the month of March. The month began $10/MBF higher than the previous month of February, at a price of $273/MBF. Sales order prices increased throughout the month with the exception of Weeks 11 and 13; in both of these weeks, prices declined by $4/MBF. The month of March ended with a price of $296/MBF.

Early in the month, sales volume remained relatively constant. In keeping with the traditional supply/demand model, however, sales volume decreased in Week 12 in response to escalating prices; in Week 13, as prices declined, sales volume picked up again.

A historical look at March reveals that the pricing trend in 2012 is similar to 2011’s, though prices are higher. March 2012 SYP lumber prices broke slightly above the $300/MBF threshold, eclipsing the March 2011 high of $288/MBF.

In both 2010 and 2011, a precipitous drop in price occurred around this time of year, following price increases at the start of the building season. (Note: In 2010, this drop was delayed by a few months, a result of the first-time homebuyer tax credit.)

For this market report, Forest2Market aggregates sales order data submitted directly by report subscribers. This figure charts weekly sales order prices from January 2010 through year to date 2012 and compares sales order data, FOB Mill on a volume weighted $/MBF basis. The prices in the figure are composite prices; they include dimension lumber, timbers and boards.

Source: Forest2Market

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