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 The Coast Forest Products Association has identified that the current market weakness in Japan coupled with soft structural lumber prices in the U.S. could result in eroding margins at coastal mills that are already facing a tough financial situation. To quantify the overall supply and demand trends impacting coastal suppliers as well as the possible price trends, Coast Forest approached R.E. Taylor and Associated Ltd. in June, 2000 to provide a brief overview of, and outlook for, the hemlock lumber market in Japan and the cedar lumber market in the U.S. As well, Coast Forest has requested a preliminary price forecast for the benchmark products within the two species to indicate what the likely outcome might be for the rest of the year in 2000 as well as in 2001 and 2002. The results of this brief analysis and outlook are to be used for planning Coast Forest's next steps in assisting their membership to deal with potential issues or strategic options.
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(27 pages, 335K) |
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