Nashville Lumber Prices Drop 7% in October

North American lumber prices fell last week as buyers slowed their purchasing pace.

Madison's Lumber Prices Index ended the week at $459 per thousand board feet. This figure represents a 7 percent drop from the previous week and an 8 percent decline from one month ago. Industry participants cite cautious buying habits and normal seasonal factors as primary reasons for the price reduction.

Housing data shows continued weakness in the sector. U.S. housing starts decreased by 5.2 percent from August to 1.221 million on an annualized basis in September. This figure is 7.4 percent lower than the same period last year. Single-family starts dropped to 859,000, while single-family permits fell by 4 percent for the month.

Southern pine markets show mixed results. Third-quarter pine sawtimber averaged just under $24 per ton, a 2 percent increase from the previous quarter but a 5 percent decrease from last year. Pine chip-n-saw averaged $16.50 per ton, down 8 percent year over year. Pine pulpwood remains the weakest category at just over $5 per ton, marking a seventh consecutive quarterly decline.

Local price variations are sharp across the region. Pine sawtimber costs range from roughly $16 to $19 per ton in parts of Tennessee and Virginia. Prices exceed $30 per ton in Florida and western North Carolina. In the Pacific Northwest, an October 23 Forest Grove timber sale saw a winning Douglas-fir bid of about $588 per thousand board feet.

Northeastern hardwood values depend heavily on species and location. Pennsylvania reports show second-quarter white oak averaging between $490 and $698 per thousand board feet. Northern red oak averaged between $472 and $587 per thousand board feet across several regions.