Drop in US plywood leads to a lower total panel output

North American structural panel production in 2022 totaled 33.283 billion square feet (3/8-inch basis), a drop of 2.3% from the 34.075 bsf produced in 2021, according to APA – The Engineered Wood Association.

According to the association, North American structural panel output in the fourth quarter of 2022 fell 5.4% from the third quarter, and 5.8% compared to the fourth quarter of 2021. Plywood led the drop, falling 6.8% from the third quarter and 8.3% from the fourth quarter of 2021. Oriented strand board (OSB) output dropped 4.9% from the third quarter and 4.7% from the fourth quarter of 2021.

OSB production in North America in 2022 totaled 23.573 bsf, 1.0% below the 23.819 bsf produced in 2021. U.S. OSB output of 15.358 bsf in 2022 was 1.8% below the 2021 total, while Canadian OSB production of 8.215 bsf was the only gain compared to 2021, up 0.4%.

North American plywood output totaled 9.710 bsf in 2022, a drop of 5.3% from the previous year. US plywood production of 7.898 bsf was down 5.3%, while Canadian plywood output of 1.812 bsf was 5.6% lower than in 2021.

Overall structural panel output is down

The overall annual figures highlight the drops for the fourth quarter of 2022. Through the third quarter, year-to-date structural panel output was down 1.4% from 2021, with OSB production just under 2021 levels and plywood output off 4.4%.

Glulam production in 2022 fell 1.6% to 310.0 million board feet. I-joist output slumped 13.5% to 741.2 million linear feet for the year, with the falloff most apparent in the fourth quarter. Laminated veneer lumber (LVL) production fell 2.8% to 78.8 million cubic feet, led by a drop in the fourth quarter.

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