How Lumber Looks

interogating a dozen wholeralers and aawmill reprereqtativer, in and around Loe Angeles, the information is gathered that January has rtarted ofr in a rtrictly satis' facory manner, for therc men.

By

By thir it is not meant that a greet rurh of buying har begun, nor doer it mean that wholesale pricee have taken any great iump.

The fall and winter volume wer unsatirfactory, ar were pricer

Matry predictione were made, all through November and I)ecernber, that the 6rrt of the year would eee a buying revival, how great no one knew, but it war confidendy ctated that 1927 would start oft with better timer, for the men who supply the retail dealer.

The commtc of thele twelve men, all boiled down, give the information that ttcy are relling lumber, relling more tfum they did in eitter November or December, that the pricea are firrn at their quoted lirt!, and, taken ar a whole, no one can complain of the conditions in Southern California, for the rtart of the year.

One man said that he had rold more rtock in the fir* twelve dayr of Jenrnry tban he had rold the whole month of Decembcr, or November.

There ir no wild price cutting, and vcr5r fcw "dbtrG.ttt lob being offered, eitber cargo rmterid or rail rtockr. And this ir a better condition.

No one item is particulady rtrong, or wea\ i4 price. Random pricee have not changed materially in eixty daye, uppen are firm at the pricee eetabliched gome time ago, lat{r are yery rtrong and there has been no change, one way or the other, in ahingl6.

Retailerr are going to rell lots of lumber trhir year. Unquectionably the volume of building in Catifornia, i\ 1927, w:ll top former years, most of them, and exper.tr have released the cheering newc in tte part few dayr that a great peroentage of thir building will be dwellingr, and not the larger clan of construction that does not offer the lumberman much in the way of ordera.

Shipmentr, at San Pedro, will just about hold tbeir own with December, by indications on the l3th of the month.

Telegraphic reportr, from San Francisco, on the rnoming of the 13th, dirclose:

"Since the first of the year, tte market in the San Francisco Bay and interior sectionc has not rhown much actfuity. However, with inventory soon out of the way, rnany wholesden look for buciners to pick up before the end of the montt.

Generdly speaking the trade are looking fonrard to a good year. In San Francirco, rome of the retailers report that there ic conriderable bueinese in sig[t but owing to precent conditions in the carpenterr' strike rituation, th€y are holding ofr building operationr. The San Joaquin Vdley reportr thet ttey are entering tie New Year in better rhape t[an for tte part four or five years.

"Douglae Fir: Cargo receiptr into San Francbco during the year 1926 rbowcd a decreare of 661175 M feet ar compard to the year 1925. The total rhipnrcntr for 1925 were 749r84O M feet, while the 1926 receiptr werc 683r665 M feet.

"At the miltr it ir reported that tbere will bc conriderabh curtail.ment dwing the montfi of January. lfiany logghg camps have gone down and logr are reported ar being tcarce.

"Redwood: Cargo rhipmotr into San Francirco during 1926 rhowed an increare ol i|4r6l6 M feet over 1925. The (Continued on Page 50)