However, he told analysts during the company's earnings conference call that
"While demand markets were challenging in 2023 and there are near-term uncertainties across our business," said McLaren, the company is optimistic about continued demand growth for the products
The company reported its fourth-quarter results yesterday after the bell, posting a loss of
In the earnings release, McLaren said the fourth quarter saw continued weakness in demand for the company's North American lumber and European panel products.
In financial documents, the company explained that changes in new home construction in the
With new housing construction levels beginning to rebound as 2023 drew to a close amid a pause in interest rate hikes, the company said it expects a combination of low home supply and a large cohort of the population entering home-buying age to support demand over the longer term.
McLaren spoke to analysts about the difficulties that lumber companies have faced in recent years.
"We have now been through a 10-year period in which total North American lumber supply has been essentially flat, with shrinking supply in
"We've spoken about the many constraints the lumber industry faces when it comes to adding capacity, and first and foremost of these as accessibility and availability of economic fibre."
So far this year, the company has announced the permanent closure of its
McLaren told investors that the complexity of the operating environment in B.C. continues to take a toll on sawmilling capacity in that province.
"Rapid policy change and uncertainty regarding decision-making on the land base have constrained available timber supply, resulting in a lack of access to economically viable fibre," he said.
The decision to close
Also causing challenges in
It's hard to predict what the impact of this will be, he said, but the company is flagging it as a potential risk for the second quarter.
"In our view, challenges to meaningful supply additions in the North American lumber industry will persist for the foreseeable future," he said. "And as such, we remain optimistic about our portfolio of assets, our capital allocation strategy and our long-term prospects for our lumber business."
Last year the company announced the sale of three of its pulp mills, one in B.C. and two in
Sales for the quarter ended
Loss per diluted share was
Shares in
This report by The Canadian Press was first published
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