Southern Comments

GENERAL

Comments from January 23, 2026.

After a warmer start to the winter, temperatures really started to drop across the South this week. The current weather conditions fit as a sturdy metaphor for the region’s hardwood market as it moves further into January.

“I had a feeling that January was going to start slowly and that’s exactly how it’s going,” one Southern sawmill operator told HMR. The market for green lumber does not have a lot of life in this region. While there is a little more movement for kiln dried stock, notably in Ash and White Oak, that market is also pretty flat.

Domestic demand is balanced with supply, while there are no new developments in terms of international trade deals. President Donald Trump’s attempts to buy Greenland, coupled with a fresh round of tariffs against European allies, are unlikely to help secure the long-awaited trade deal with the EU, while an agreement with China looks unlikely anytime soon. That said, interest from China and Vietnam is starting to re-emerge for some Southern market participants. Chinese container issues for larger orders have been mentioned as a recent problem by one area sawmill operator.

“This has been a long, ugly downturn,” a sawmill operator told HMR, describing the current state of the hardwood industry. “The recovery keeps getting pushed down the road. It feels precarious out there. I think it is inevitable that we are going to be a smaller industry than what we have been.”

On the positive side, logging has been strong across the region of late. In Arkansas, particularly around the White River, plenty of Red and White Oak is being felled. One contact reported ground being logged that is usually only open in summer, an indication of how dry the winter has been there. In Alabama, it has been wetter, but reports indicate logging is going “moderately well.”

ASH

Despite colder temperatures, logging has been going strongly in the South recently, increasing opportunities for lowland species like Ash to be cut. Despite that, green Ash prices are stable. Kiln dried prices have seen more fluctuations, with 4/4 Fas registering drops to its list prices and lower end ranges. With increases to its listing and lower and upper ranges, 4/4 #1C went the other way.

BEECH

PECAN & HICKORY

MIXED SOFT HARDWOODS

SAP GUM

SOFT MAPLE

#2A&3A OAK

Before the end of 2025, secondary manufacturers built up sizeable #2A&3A Oak inventories, leading to a lack of change in the market to start the New Year. This week, things started moving again, with the list price for green 4/4 #3A Red Oak falling. Multiple sources have told HMR that certain truck trailer flooring manufacturers are starting to purchase in meaningful volumes again, which could lead to further movement.

RED OAK

With secondary manufacturers carrying ample inventories and international demand capped by a challenging trade climate, demand for Red Oak is static. The green 4/4 #3A listing warrants a modest reduction, whereas all the other green and kiln dried figures are in order.

WHITE OAK

Though the overall picture for White Oak shows little significant movement in demand, this species had the most price changes in the Southern region this week. Most are for kiln dried 4/4 #2A&Btr. The list prices and lower ends for 4/4 #1C&Btr all drop, as do the upper end ranges for 4/4 Fas. In addition, the upper ends of the 4/4 #2A ranges fall. The only green changes this week are for 8/4 Fas&1f, which notch gains.

POPLAR

The Poplar market in the South is very stable this week, with the only price changes coming for thick stock. Kiln dried 8/4 Fas sees its lower ends increase.

FRAMESTOCK, CANTS, TIES, & BOARD ROAD

Markets for most Southern industrial products are flat this week. There are no changes in published prices for pallet cants, framestock, or board road. The only movement comes for crossties. The lower end of the Eastern 7x9 crosstie range drops because of the tie buying downturn occurring in the South.

Contacts have revealed the downturn is more pronounced on the Eastern side of the Mississippi River than the West. Some sawmills in Alabama and North Carolina have seen tie quotas cut in half, causing concern for many. However, one industry source told HMR he expects the downturn to be short-term and was more related to low tie insertions last summer, leading to an over-sized inventory for many railroads to start 2026, than any worrying long-term trends.

Appalachian Comments

ASH

Mills sawing this species are working from low log decks that limit green #2A&Btr output. Supplies are not strained, however, because neither global nor domestic markets are showing materially stronger interest. Reported green prices hold the published listings in check. Most kiln dried prices are consistent with last week, but information shows some upward movement for 4/4 #2A that lifts the listings and ranges. The listings for 6/4 Fas also advance.

BASSWOOD

Some sellers have repeat Basswood business with long-term customers, but new orders beyond that are hard to find. Overall, limited sawmill output aligns with tepid demand. Recent transactions keep all the green and kiln dried figures in order.

BEECH

BIRCH

CHERRY

Market interest for Cherry has increased over the last few months, driven entirely by renewed Chinese interest after US-China trade relations thawed out. Yet some suppliers remain cautious, as demand for all grades and thicknesses is not even. While some contacts report good demand for the upper grades, others state that sales of #1C&Btr are slow. Shortages of Appalachian green 4/4 Fas&1f continue to push prices up. The listings climb $25 this week and have risen $135 since late November. Price reports also advance the listings for green North Central 4/4 #1C and #2A following six weeks of no changes. On the dry side, the listings and ranges for 4/4 #1C are raised in the North Central producing area, but all the other published figures across both subregions are unchanged.

HICKORY

Domestic consumption of green Hickory has slowed. Some residential flooring plants are purchasing considerably less Hickory in January than December, while others are purchasing only slightly less. Current production is aligned with slower demand, however, resulting in no changes to the green listings. International activity has a significant impact on kiln dried business, but exports to Mexico, China, Canada, and Vietnam were all lower year-over-year through October. Meanwhile, reports suggest modest improvement in domestic sales of kiln dried 4/4 Fas. The only kiln dried changes lift the low end ranges for 4/4 Fas.

HARD MAPLE

The downward pressure on green #1&2 White 4/4 Fas&1f Hard Maple seen in recent price reports pauses in this edition. A yard contact says he remains cautious with the upper grades but would take all the #1C and #2A he could get, with demand for the common grades easily outpacing uppers. Changes in prior weeks have the green listings in order in both color classifications. Kiln dried prices are mostly steady in observed trading, allowing most published figures to stand. However, the ranges for kiln dried #1&2 White 5/4 #1C are raised, while the listings and ranges for Unselected 4/4 #2A are lowered to better align with information gathered this week.

SOFT MAPLE

Soft Maple remains an easy sell for most, but demand is stronger for #1C&Btr than for #2A. Upper grade brown Soft Maple also makes some sellers’ lists of best-moving items, while #1C appears on some worst seller lists. Production has been sufficient to meet the market’s needs for both green and kiln dried stocks. However, seasonally slower residential remodeling in the US and Canada has weakened demand. The listings for green 5/4 and 6/4 Fas&1f are reduced in both color designations. Information necessitates reductions to the listings for kiln dried 4/4 #1C in both color sorts, while the listings and ranges for Unselected 8/4 #2A also move lower.

#2&3A OAK

Activity for residential flooring is seasonally slow and some plants recently cut purchase prices for #3A Red Oak more than #2A, attempting to curb No. 2Com Red Oak flooring output and mitigate losses on those items. Reported #2A&3A prices are largely unchanged this week; therefore, no changes are required following last week’s reductions. Respondents to HMR’s weekly surveys have consistently listed truck trailer flooring as the weakest domestic sector during the last couple of months. However, reports are emerging of improved business in that sector. Relatively decent demand for #2A&3A White Oak from the residential flooring industry has helped to keep prices unchanged. Recent reports indicate that some White Oak residential flooring inventories are rising, but downward price pressures on #2A&3A White Oak is not evident in this week’s incoming price reports.

RED OAK

Exporting sawmills and concentration yards have shipments on the water to China ahead of its New Year, which starts February 17th. While sales to China have picked up of late, there is plenty of uncertainty regarding how strong Chinese demand for Red Oak will be once the Chinese New Year is over. A good indicator will be how frequently Chinese buyers contact US sellers during this traditional quiet period. More contact generally portends rising concerns about availability, while little contact suggests landed inventories are sufficient to meet short-term needs. Demand for green 4/4 Fas&1f slightly outpaces supply, and the listings bump up $10. Supply and demand for kiln dried Red Oak are largely in equilibrium this week; the only changes lift the low end ranges for 5/4 Fas.

WHITE OAK

Green and kiln dried #1C&Btr White Oak price declines have been more of a return to typical pricing levels coming off historical highs than indicative of poor demand. They are also a function of considerably less competition from stave markets for high quality White Oak logs that results in higher yields of #1C&Btr lumber. Reported green 6/4 #1C prices show a downward bias that lowers the listing. Meanwhile, adjustments in prior weeks have all kiln dried figures in order.

POPLAR

Orders for kiln dried Poplar are keeping pace with production, though demand for Fas varies by length. Yards are more willing to purchase 8-foot and 16-foot stock than 10-foot and 12-foot material. Though one sawmiller reported tough sales of kiln dried 8/4 #2A Poplar, only the listings for 6/4 Fas lose ground this week. All green listings are unchanged.

WALNUT

Concentration yards remain assertive with green Walnut purchasing. Only the listings for 4/4 through 8/4 #2A have upward momentum, however, though they rise at a slower pace this week than last. Kiln dried orders from China are heaviest to 4/4 and 5/4 and are described by contacts as equally strong in all grades. The only movement in kiln dried pricing lifts the ranges for 6/4 #2A.

FRAMESTOCK, CANTS, TIES, & BOARD ROAD

Buyers are not actively seeking well air dried framestock material, and producers are focusing their low grade efforts on more profitable and salable items. Limited output aligns with limited demand, and no changes are required to the respective price ranges.

Demand for wood packaging material is stable. Business is similarly steady for most cant producers, who are moving their output at prices that keep the listing and range in check.

Reports of steady-to-slower demand for 7x9 crossties continue this week, following mostly steady-to-stronger demand throughout 2025. Northern Appalachian prices are stable, but information lowers the high end of the range for 7x9 crossties in the Southern Appalachian area.

Activity for board road is mixed in early 2026, continuing the lack of a clear directional trend in 2025. Limited transactions are within the published range.