Wood Markets News


Associated Builders and Contractors Construction Backlog Indicator Declines in March as Contractor Optimism Continues to Grow

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) are reporting that their Construction Backlog Indicator (CBI) dropped to 7.8 months in March, according to an ABC member survey conducted from March 22 to April 5 — a decrease of 0.4 months from both the February 2021 and March 2020 readings. ABC’s Construction Confidence Index readings for sales, profit margins and staffing levels increased in March.

EACOM Timber Investing in New Continuous Dry Kiln for Elk Lake Sawmill

EACOM Timber Corporation, a major Eastern Canadian wood products company, which owns and operates seven sawmills, a remanufacturing facility, and an engineered I-joist plant, today announced it was investing $8.9M to equip its Elk Lake sawmill with a new, state-of-the art, continuous dry kiln (CDK). The CDK kiln is expected to be fully operational by early fall and will allow for continuous drying of lumber, reducing production bottlenecks and energy consumption.

Freddie Mac’s Economic and Housing Research Group Sees Lots of Positives in Current Economic Environment

Freddie Mac’s Economic and Housing Research Group is reporting that they are seeing lots of positives in the current economic environment. The company’s quarterly forecast points to the increasing availability of COVID-19 vaccines and the easing of virus-related restrictions, the passage of the American Rescue plan, and its cash stimulus for households as setting the stage for economic growth and sending consumer confidence to a post pandemic high in March.

Builders Confidence Edges Higher in April

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) / Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) reports that strong buyer demand pushed builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes up 1-point to a reading of 83.