THE CALIFOR}IIA LUMBERMERCHANT rrn.^

JackDionne,tWlislw'

How Lumber Looks

Lumber shipments ol 523 mills reporting to the National Lumber Trade Barotneter in the rveek ended April 16 rvere ll.6/c above production; orclers vere 21.0/o above and unfilled orders were 46/c of stocks. In the u'eek ended April 9, shipments of 521 miils u'ere 2.6c/o above production; orders 2.8/r: allove. In the l'eek ended April 2, shipments of 514 mills n,ere 5.3'y' above production; orders werc 15.3% above.

Lumber production in February totaled an estirnatecl 2,881,000,000 board feet, according to the NLMA, a gain of. 5/o over January this year and 1/o greater tl.ran Febrttary 1954. Shipments .rere l/o more than production, rvhiie nerv orders w'ere 3/o above. For 1955's first two months, national lumber production of 5,629,000,000 board feet r'vas 2/o abead of 1954, r'vith a gain of 8/o in softrvoods offset by an I8/o decline in hardwoods. Nerv softwood orders ex-

la Tloa la,tt p

Mcnch Housing Starts Exceed 1954

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SCRTA 38th Annucl Conventio"; .... :.

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Fun-Fccts-Filosophy

New koducts Inlormcrtion

$2OO Million Annuol Repoir Bill Needed in los Angeles

To maintain and rehabilitate Los Angeles residential property and stop the development of nerv substandard, near-slum or actual slum neighborhoods requires an annual expenditure of more than $200 million, David Slipher, Nerv York, told members of the I{ome Builders Institute last month. At present only $52 million is spent annually on home improvements in the grcater L. A. area.

ceeded production by 3/o; hardlvood orders u'ere 187" greater than output.

The \\rest Coast Lumbermen's Association reportecl for 181 mills (159 operating) in the week ended April 16: production, 123,49 6,897 f eet ; shipm ents, 7 39,97 2,5 33 leet (13.3 % over production) ; orders, 150,024,971 f.eet (21.5/o over production). In the rveek ended April 9, 170 operating mills shou.ed production 124,N2,650 feet, shipments 121,319,094 feet, and orders l'2j,ffi1,497 f.eet.

First quarter 1955 report for the Douglas fir region rvas released by Harris E. Smith, secretary, WCLA. The rveekly average of rvest coast lumber production in March u'as 194,670,000 b.f., or 103,9% of the 195G54 average; orders averaged 198,255,000 b.f., and shipments z0z,OZZ,ffiO b.l. Three months of 1955 cumulative production was: procltlc(Continued on Page 72)

STUDs, BOARDS, DIXTENSION TUIIBER

PLANK, TII'TBERs, RAILROAD TIES, INDUSTRIAL CUTTINGS

Contractor,