Saw mills that hunkered down for a coronavirus-driven downturn now are struggling to keep up with strong demand. Lumber consumption across the U.S. has exceeded even optimistic forecasts, the WSJ’s Julia-Ambra Verlaine and Ryan Dezember report, leaving home builders, retailers and craftspeople clamoring for wood. Lumber futures have more than doubled since early April, when mill owners curtailed roughly 40% of North America’s sawing capacity. They expected widespread job loss and economic uncertainty would torpedo demand for building products. Instead, homebound Americans embraced home-improvement projects while home builders are rushing to meet soaring demand for houses amid rock-bottom interest rates and a flight to the suburbs. A pricing service says buyers in the South desperate to avoid running out of inventory told suppliers to “name their price.” The turmoil in lumber markets shows how the pandemic has turned some markets upside down and made forecasting little more than guesswork.
– Bob
Operations and Supply Chain Management 