Thread: Western Red Cedar, where do ya get it?

If you have'nt already maybe it's time to invest in a couple of Rotties to guard your timber stash

Originally Posted by John Saxton

If you have'nt already maybe it's time to invest in a couple of Rotties to guard your timber stash

Eastern browns are more effective.

Originally Posted by artful bodger

... I can only put it down to Bass Straight, surely it is not that dear in the big mainland towns. ...

Nope; for once, its got nothing to do with The Moat.

Originally Posted by Greg Q

There are several reasons why Canadian forest products tripled in price- fires, floods, covid, demand. All of those reasons are much less in play now, for the moment. US timber prices are now less than half of what they were in January, and the massive US market is what drives prices worldwide. ...

Greg's nailed it. Ultimately the Chicago Board of Trade sets the commodity prices for timber world wide. Lumber is priced in US$'s per contract of 1,000 board feet (~2.36 m3) and the price peaked at $1,562.20 on 3 March 2022 and then decline and was $585.30 last night - a decline of 62%. Any WRC timber now on sale in Australia may have left Canada four months ago when the prices were peaking.

Lumber 1.jpghttps://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/lumber


If we look at the long term commodity price of Lumber then it has mainly bounced around between $200 and $400 per contract for the previous 20+ years, and then when covid struck prices suddenly became much more volatile and also went through the roof. They are now moderating but are still volatile and a little high in historical terms.

Another big and unpredictable destabiliser here is that Russia is a major timber producer and trader.

Lumber 2.jpg
Same Source:


All we can do is to sit back and wait and hope that the prices return to "normal" as soon as possible.

I think we are going to have to get used to a new "normal." And that doesnt only apply to timber.

Originally Posted by rustynail

I think we are going to have to get used to a new "normal." And that doesnt only apply to timber.

I think that you are right rustynail. The other related question is when will the current instability end - or when will the new "normal" start?

My guess is not until the world works out what to do about Russia. The world operated quite well for 44 years during the cold war with Russia self-imprisonned behind the iron curtain. My guess is that something similar is now being erected and Russia will simply isolated by another such wall.

I think instability will be the new normal. Its not only Russia and more to the point, Putin who needs to be dealt with. We also have China and Nth Korea to worry about. They must be amazed at the lack of action taken by the rest of the world re Ukraine.
Such instability can only increase costs and thereby inflation.
INTERESTing times ahead (excuse the pun.)