Business, Contracting, Markets 35 September 2024 multiple uses; socio-economic impacts to rural communities; and shrunken tax base for schools and governments. There are multiple factors impacting Oregon’s forest sector, which has impelled these mill closures. But, the three common threads that obstruct our industry are workforce challenges, rising tax and regulation, and public timber supply declines. While our industry has many advantages in the North American forest product market, these closures may slow local progress, as Oregon’s forest sector can and will rebound for a stronger future. AOL’s work ahead together with other sector organizations is ever-more important—to overcome these three obstacles—and grow our industry to fulfill its vast growth potential. Lumber Markets In July, structural lumber price indices rebounded higher by just 3%. Lumber indices for the past 15 consecutive weeks remained stuck below $400 per mbf, a punishing price for manufacturers. Analysts predict lumber prices had bottomed in July (MadisonsReport. com/8/2/24). The approximated lumber index listed below is a U.S. and Canada nationwide composite for various grades of structural lumber, reported by www. nahb.org/. Framing Lumber Price* 8/2/24 7/5/24 Year Ago Framing Lumber Composite Price[mbf] $376 $364 $450 * Source: National Association of Home Builders, reported from Random Lengths Lumber Composite Price—$ per thousand bdft. lumber tally. Log Markets In July, Washington’s reported domestic log prices compared to the prior month fell across the board, losing 3% to 5% on the westside, and losing 5–11% on the eastside. Domestic mill log prices shown below are WA pond values that are similar to Oregon’s. WA log prices are reported monthly online without fee by WA Dept. of Natural Resources, at: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/programsand-services/product-sales-and-leasing/ timber-sales/timber-sale-querylog-prices/. July 2024 WA Delivered Log Prices† WA Coast Region Species & Grade July June Year Ago Doug fir 2S 699 734 735 Hemlock 2S 524 538 504 Alder 3S 600 617 588 WA Eastside Region Species; camprun July June Year Ago Doug fir/larch 469 520 519 White fir/hem 447 469 504 Lodgepole 425 453 446 P Pine 360 405 327 † Source: WA Dept of Natural Resources; WA Mill Log Prices; Domestically Processed—$ per thousand bdft; average price; log scale, pond value.
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