Canada’s West Fraser Timber Sees Shipments Slump on British Columbia Floods

By Simon Casey (Bloomberg) —

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd., one of Canada’s largest lumber producers, said weekly lumber shipments plunged about 25% to 30% in the second half of the month following severe flooding in the western Canadian province of British Columbia.

Pulp shipments to the port of Vancouver have averaged less than 20% of normal volumes, the Vancouver-based company said Tuesday in a statement. West Fraser has reduced operations scheduled at various west Canadian locations.

“While West Fraser is utilizing alternative transportation routes and methods to the extent they are available to continue servicing customers, the magnitude and duration of the impact from current weather events remains uncertain,” it said.

Shares of West Fraser fell 0.9% to C$105.75 at 9:39 a.m. trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

British Columbia on Monday extended a state of emergency and fuel rationing until mid-December as it braces for more heavy rain. Parts of the province are still struggling with damage from floods and landslides that closed highways and railways two weeks ago, sharply reducing the flow of goods like grain and lumber to Canada’s biggest port in Vancouver.

Rainfall warnings are in effect for Vancouver, with Environment Canada forecasting a prolonged period of heavy rain through Wednesday. Total rainfall of 60 millimeters (2.4 inches) is expected over the region, and rising freezing levels and snow melt may contribute to increased runoff.

© 2021 Bloomberg L.P.

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