The Lumber Word

Industry veteran Sig Thoma joins Gregg, Matt, and Ashley to break down a lumber market searching for direction. The crew digs into mill fixed costs, why curtailments are so tough, and where early green shoots may appear heading into 2026. They debate contracts vs. VMI for next year, highlight what sellers are doing, and share the items they’re buying—plus the risk strategies they’re using right no...

In Episode #148 of The Lumber Word, Matt, Gregg, Charles and Ashley sit down with Kyle Little, COO of Sherwood Lumber and current NAWLA Chairman, to talk about staying grateful in one of the toughest markets we've seen in years. Kyle gives an inside look at what NAWLA is working on to improve meetings and member engagement, while the crew runs through a quick market round robin — how short is mult...

This week we welcome back one of our favorite guests — and sponsor — Matt Layman. The crew breaks down the strange mood gripping the industry: no curtailments, exhausted traders, Repair & Remodel softening, and customers disappearing into the weeds. We run through every major species, what’s cheap, what’s expensive, and how November expiration and January futures could shape the next move. Mat...

Gregg, Matt, and Ashley dive right in this week after a jam-packed NAWLA Traders event in Kansas City. The trio breaks down the mood coming out of the show — who was optimistic, who wasn’t, and what that means for the lumber market heading into year-end. They take a hard look at the November CME lumber expiration, asking whether open interest is too high or if most of it will roll into EFPs as the...

This week on The Lumber Word, the crew welcomes Patrick Teoli, IT specialist and owner of BluCirrus, to tackle all those tech questions that “just unplug it and plug it back in” won’t solve. From system crashes to smarter setups, Patrick keeps it real about how tech meets the lumber world. Then, things heat up fast in the lumber market discussion — and it’s a wild one. After a sharp CME selloff, f...

Matt, Gregg, Charles, and Ashley are back on track this week talking about what might be the calm before the next lumber storm. The crew breaks down the quiet market tone and asks the question everyone’s thinking — are we moving from seasonal weakness into a period of strength? Charles thinks many dealers have been “good-dealed to death” over the past 60 days and simply don’t need to buy, while Gr...

Gregg, Charles, and Ashley kick things off with a deep dive into Southern Pine curtailments — and why they still haven’t kicked in. The crew then runs through different scenarios for when Canadian mills might finally shut down more production. Gregg predicts we could see a 7-handle on lumber in Q1 of ’26, while Charles brings up multi-family projects and who’s short that business heading into 2026...

We jump right in by challenging each other on the ultimate lumber question — what would hurt the most people the most: prices going up or down? From there, it’s a full-on debate about seasonality, market psychology, and whether this “underbought” market is actually overproduced… or maybe it’s the other way around. As usual, we dropped plenty of gems on how each of us navigates the chaos to make mo...

Russ Taylor joins Matt, Gregg, and Ashley to unpack tariffs, production costs, and the week’s price moves. Could lumber really hit $800 MBF in Q1? Tune in for sharp insights and insider tips every trader and builder will want to hear. Guest: Russ Taylor Russtaylor@russtaylorglobal.com www.russtaylorglobal.com Advertisers: Fastmarkets Random Lengths djalbert@fastmarkets.com www.fastmarkets.com Laym...

Dustin Jalbert from Fastmarkets is back with us this week, and the crew dives deep into the latest twists in the lumber market. Charles kicks things off with a rundown on Southern Pine, then we shift into production trends and what last month’s housing completions mean for new home sales. Gregg and Dustin break down what they’re seeing on the production side while Matt ties it all together with so...

Charles is back from wrangling cattle, Matt’s out in Texas, and Ashley and Gregg return from a wedding to dive into the latest lumber talk. Curtailment announcements gave the market a short-term jolt—does this signal a bottom, or are we still waiting? We break down what housing starts really mean, whether customers are sitting on healthy inventory or running on fumes, and what all this says about...

Stinson Dean from Revol Building Solutions joins Matt, Gregg, and Ashley to break down the latest lumber market signals. Fresh off his feature in The Wall Street Journal, Stinson dives into supply and demand, what end users are doing, and how different scenarios could play out. The crew challenges each other with bold takes on where things may head next.   Guest: Stinson Dean stinson.dean@revol-ig...

The Lumber Word crew is back with special guest Rob Cross from StoneX, a veteran voice in the lumber industry. Gregg may have handed out the keys to the lumber castle today with the sheer amount of free insight he shared. Charles breaks down what’s happening in the SYP market, while Matt dives into the cost stacks shaping price moves. Ashley takes a hard look at how greed and fear yanked this mark...

In Episode #136 of The Lumber Word Podcast, Matt, Gregg, and Ashley take the lead while Charles tends to the cattle. This week’s guest is none other than Brian Wesbury, Chief Economist at First Trust LP, and one of our most popular returning guests. Despite his busy schedule, which includes numerous media appearances, Brian always makes time to share his perspective on economics and lumber with ou...

Matt, Charles, and Ashley run the desk while Gregg’s in Canada. With light trading, mills sitting still, and buyers hesitant, the market’s stuck in confusion. Housing starts look steady, but tariff noise has everyone frozen. Will SPF pick a direction, or will SYP and U.S. species finally wake up?   Show Contacts Gregg Riley: Gregg@sitkainc.com Charles DeLaTorre: cdelatorre@ifpwood.com Matt Beymer:...

This week, we’re calling our shot on just how low September Lumber Futures could go—and why a cash market adjustment may be right behind it. If you’re buying, selling, or negotiating in the next 30 days, you’ll want to hear this. We’re also joined by returning guest Chris Beard from John Burns Research & Consulting, with sharp insights on builders powering through price swings, the rise of bui...

Join hosts Matt, Gregg, Ashley, and Charles for Episode #133 of "The Lumber Word" Podcast, your weekly deep dive into the wild world of lumber markets. This episode unpacks the latest cash and futures trends, explores key inflection points amid truckers scrambling for orders, and mills in Canada and the US starting to look for real orders. We debate why raising prices doesn't always mean buyers bi...

This week we’re joined by John H. Dolan, independent market maker for the CME S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index futures. John breaks down how the index works, who uses it, and the game-changing potential it holds for anyone exposed to home price risk. Whether you own one home or thousands, are building spec homes, or just want to lock in a regional housing price—this is a must-listen. We were...

Russ Taylor of Russ Taylor Global is back, and he’s bringing the global heat! We kick off with the current AD/CVD drama and whether Southern Yellow Pine producers are making money—Russ has the receipts. Matt lays out the price cuts in the cash market, while Gregg points out a wild nearly $100/MBF gap between CME futures and deliverable Hem-Fir. Charles and Russ dive deep into mill residuals and ho...

Matt is back in the saddle for Episode #130 with a recap of the Inland Lumber producers' outing—including what he saw, heard, and how it might impact your trading mindset. Charles gives us a fresh update on the SYP market, and Gregg drops his latest forecast as we roundtable the market outlook for the next 45 to 90 days. Want to know how we’re managing our inventory through all this? We lay it all...

Bart Charles returns, and we’re not mad about it. This week, we unpack the buzz around Hem-Fir now being deliverable on the CME lumber contract—try to stay with us, it’s worth it. Gregg walks through what’s happening in the cash markets and how deep the inventory buying goes. Then we all weigh in on how much of the upcoming CVD/AD action is already priced in. As usual, we gave away more trading in...

Matt and Charles join Ashley to break down what’s going on in the commodity lumber market as we wrap up June. The crew dives into SPF and questions whether it’s still holding a premium simply because traders think it should. With new home sales softening and housing data turning shaky, is there anything fundamental propping it up? We talk about the pain of owning 2x6—why it feels rough right now,...

This week, Matt and Ashley are joined by Bart Charles from Atlantic Forest Products, one of the top cash and futures traders in North America. We dig into what we’re doing with our current positions and what we see ahead in the lumber market. From May housing numbers to the looming increase in Canadian CVD and AD duties, we cover the major forces shaping the near- term outlook. We also unpack the...

With Gregg off to Europe for a few weeks, the rest of the crew held down the fort and had plenty to unpack. We kicked things off by acknowledging the incredible growth of our audience—thanks to the many decision-makers across the industry who tune in every week. This week’s market feels... weird. Confusion reigns as everyone waits for the updated Anti-Dumping (AD) and Countervailing Duties (CVD) o...

The crew is back together for a jam-packed episode! Matt returns from his travels, and we hit the mailbag to tackle listener questions before diving into regional updates: Matt covers U.S. Spec and Texas, Charles breaks down SYP, and Gregg takes us through the Great Lakes and Boston. We recap key takeaways from Russ Taylor’s insights last week, then dig into the latest in housing—both new and exis...