Starting next week, Vancouver's West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (TSX:WFT) plans to cut production at three of its U.S. mills.
Production at its mill in Leola, Arkansas; Whitehouse, Florida; and Maplesville, Alabama, will be shutdown for two weeks. The curtailments add to the shutdowns West Fraser announced in March, in which 1,160 employees were affected by one- and two-week shutdowns at seven lumber facilities in B.C. and another 600 employees were affected by one-week curtailments at its two B.C. plywood mills.
The move is a response to continued weakness in the U.S. housing market, which has hammered new home construction. In February, West Fraser reported an annual loss of $137 million, up from $36 million in 2007. Revenue fell to $3.19 billion from $3.3 billion.
A recent International Wood Markets report said West Fraser has became North America's largest lumber producer, surpassing Canfor in Canada and Weyerhaeuser in the U.S., based on its production in 2008.
West Fraser's share price range during the past week: between $22.48 and $23.75; 52-week high: $39.84; 52-week low: $20.93.