Lumber prices climbed above $640 per thousand board feet, hitting a one-year high, as widespread wildfires across Western Canada tightened the supply outlook. More than 900 fires burned over the weekend, including in British Columbia—Canada’s largest lumber-exporting province—where evacuation alerts threatened to disrupt forestry operations.
Intensifying supply concerns, President Donald Trump signaled he might fold wildfire-related costs into existing tariffs of nearly 35% on Canadian lumber. At the same time, sawmill capacity remained constrained: Canadian duties had already prompted production cuts and mill closures, while increasing US log exports to China further strained domestic lumber supply chains.
On the demand side, US housing starts rose 19%, but the gain was driven largely by multifamily projects rather than the more lumber-intensive single-family homes, limiting the boost to lumber demand.