The start of the new year has witnessed a continuation of the trend towards OSB price progress with increases of, typically, 5% implemented for January.
Pointing to relatively strong demand as well as to a number of supply issues, one senior producer noted: “I would expect further increases in the OSB price sooner rather than later in the first quarter.”
Demand has been driven in part by higher plywood prices and lead times have gone to at least two weeks. A lack of available logs and the severe winter weather have caused problems on the other side of the equation – to the extent that, in the first full week of January, one OSB producer alerted customers to the possibility of supply disruptions. Producers have faced an escalation in wood, handling and transport costs.
According to one producer, OSB price increases are still failing to keep pace with the increases for competing constructional plywood such as elliottii from Brazil. As a result, the differential between the two products has continued to widen.
