Flat rolled steel prices have started the new year strong, jumping by another $25-55 per ton and taking the benchmark hot rolled price above $1,000, within sight of the record high of $1,070 per ton seen in 2008.
The U.S. Department of Commerce today confirmed once again that Canadian softwood lumber is heavily subsidized and dumped into the U.S. market by issuing a combined anti-subsidy and anti-dumping duty "administrative review" rate of 8.81%.
As we reported last week, component manufacturers (CMs) across the country are witnessing “unprecedented increases, [80% since mid-April,] in softwood lumber costs in all markets amongst all grade and species combinations.”
The strike at Canada’s largest rail network may be over, but it will take days or weeks before the supply chain gets back on track, industry leaders say.
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction decreased by 1.1% in June (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The latest announcement of major sawmill curtailments Monday, this time with Canfor making production cuts at all its facilities, caused a complete reversal of lumber futures prices on the Chicago Merchantile Exchange.