Timber risks outweigh opportunities, experts say

Log and lumber prices aren’t expected to be as volatile in 2019 as last year, but experts still aren’t bullish about the timber industry’s economic outlook. After hitting a record high of $564 last June, the price per thousand board feet of framing lumber dropped 40 percent by the end of the year, to $335, according to the Random Lengths market information service. The shift was brought on by tepid growth in housing starts, a strong supply of lumber and concerns about interest rates, among other factors that are likely to persist in 2019