Plywood’s price premium compared to OSB has narrowed in the North American market, according to industry newsletter Random Lengths.
OSB’s rise in the structural panels sector, with resulting price increases for the product, has led to some end users considering plywood and OSB interchangeable.
Last year, southern pine and western fir plywood reached their lowest premium to OSB since 1995. The western fir product’s price dipped to a US$64 premium, while southern pine was down to US$31.
But some plywood traders fear that an oversupply of fashionable OSB could raise premiums again and turn people off plywood.
OSB prices have been equal to or greater than fir plywood rates five times in the past three years.
