National Hardwood Magazine - November 2023

WEST COAST Continued from page 7
ONTARIO Continued from page 8
people to work with. They can’t get as much done as
demand requires for them because they can’t get bodies
in the door that want to work.”
An Oregon wholesaler said labor was also a large concern.
“We are having a hard time replacing the older generation.
Not a lot of people are interested in working with
wood anymore. Our newer employees are sons of their
dads who have worked with us for decades.”
As for his market activity the source said he markets to
end users and other wholesale distributors. “We are seeing
a slow down right now,” he noted. “It’s typical of the
season’s turn.” He commented that transportation was a
bright spot. “We had some issues in the spring, but not
so much right now. Along the West Coast there was so
much produce and nursery stock so availability is really
good.”
When asked about a future forecast he said, “I don’t
look for many changes. We’re heading into a slower season
for everybody and with prices diving the way they did
last year, I just hope we don’t see a repeat. Inventory is
a little higher than this time last year so maybe we’ll see
it even out before break up.”
In Washington a Hardwood lumber supplier said the
biggest concern for his business is lack of demand from
international markets. “The lack of demand from China
has hit us a bit this year,” he explained. That has an impact
that directly impacts markets domestically. Prices
have been pushed down as a result.”
Looking at what lays ahead, sources in the region said
they expect more hit or miss activity and a possible seasonal
slow down. The Washington contact commented,
“We took a dive in the spring. So logging suffered and
there was a lot of inventory at the time. Now that this
inventory has gone away there isn’t anything in the chain
to replace it. The eastern species take so long to dry, up
to six months depending on the species. We may not
see much availability in that area until after the first of the
year and prices will rise again.” n
tracted for certain areas. The decline is reported as less
for this species than compared to others. It is one of
the better-selling species for many contacts with prices
holding. On the other hand, some sawmills are not producing
green Ash, while others are. Supplies match the
needs and prices are stable.
As Aspen is often used as an alternative to other higher
priced species, demand for it is on a firm foundation
for certain applications. It is, however, receiving strong
competition from plywood, MDF and other non-wood
products. Demand for Hardwood finished products has
also dropped at this time.
Sales of Hard Maple are noted as being driven by supply
rather than demand. Secondary manufacturers are
still struggling with sales of finished goods and so their
requirements at this time have substantially declined for
Hard Maple. Green Hard Maple is also not doing as well
as kiln-dried stocks, it was reported, and it is not flooding
the markets either, so prices are stabilized.
Supplies are limited for Soft Maple, and buyers and
wholesalers advise that inventories of kiln-dried Soft Maple
have declined and obtaining No. 1 Common and Better
grades is challenging. A better seller for this species,
they noted, is Sap and Better grades which is noted as
decent.
Although demand is not high for Birch, said contacts, it
remains relatively steady. Contacts noted that Basswood
is not performing well at this time due to slow finished
good sales and competition of other products taking its
market share. Kiln-dried inventories are reported high
relative to buyers’ needs. It is difficult to find orders for
green production, with cants and low grade lumber a
challenge to move.
Red Oak exports are down since the beginning of the
year for many regions for producers and wholesalers.
Business for this species is steady, but at a slow place on
domestic markets. Production of Red Oak is limited, with
a tightening of kiln-dried supplies being reported, along
with firming prices, particularly for upper grades.
As for White Oak, competition is intense for quality
logs, which is limiting the volume of sawn lumber for
Please turn the page
Manufacturers and Exporters of Quality Pennsylvania Hardwoods
Producing 25,000,000 BF annually • 1,500,000 MBF of Kiln capacity
Specializing in Ash • Red Oak • Hard Maple • Soft Maple • Cherry
Hardwood Lumber and Logs
Export Packaging and Container Loading
Band Sawn Lumber at Shinglehouse, Pennsylvania (U.S.A.) location.
Log Sales - Bob Mallery
Phone: 814-697-6576 FAX: 814-697-6637
escott@ramforestproducts.com
Lumber Sales - Andy Nuffer
Phone: 336-813-1512 FAX: 336-939-5414
anuffer@ramforestproducts.com
Forest Products, Inc.
1716 Honeoye Rd.
Shinglehouse, Pennsylvania 16748
Lumber Sales - Rus Gustin
Phone: 814-697-7185 FAX: 814-697-7190
rgustin@ramforestproducts.com
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