Lumber Mania

One of the things people don’t think about a lot is the tremendous amount of wood used for concrete forms. Those have a very short lifespan, so they go through a lot of plywood for that. Shipping containers are all lined with plywood and that has a short lifespan. All that economic activity drives up demand for all sorts of wood products. As an example, pulp prices [for cardboard boxes] generally run around $1,000 a metric ton. They’re up to $1,400 per metric ton now. That increased cost is driving up prices for all those products.

Then there’s the infrastructure bill that, if it passes, would create additional sharp demand for even more wood, adding upward pricing pressure.
-Globe Street