West Fraser Timber posts US$61 million loss in second quarter

The West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd sawmill in Quesnel. Photo: Submitted/West Fraser Tim

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West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. posted a US$61 million loss in its latest financial quarter, though company executives reported some improvement in market conditions and modest increases in some production sectors.

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West Fraser, North America’s No. 1 lumber producer, reported its second quarter financial results this week recording the loss on $1.43 billion in sales. The company reports financial results in US dollars.

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The loss was steeper than the $24 million loss on $1.53 billion in sales for the same quarter a year ago, but an improvement on the $188 million loss for $1.33 billion in sales from the first quarter of 2026.

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In a news release, CEO Sean McLaren said the company “delivered continued progress against our business priorities supported by improved market conditions across most of our segments.”

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Within its operations, McLaren said the company’s southern U.S. mills improved on productivity and reliability and, in Canada, lumber production was up 13 per cent in the quarter owing to its Blue Ridge, Alta., mill being brought back into full production.

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The improved performance helped West Fraser earn a $59 million operating profit for the quarter, which turned into the $61 million loss after taxes, interest charges, and accounting for amortization and depreciation of assets.

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“On the lumber side, we’re seeing a little bit better supply-demand mix,” West Fraser senior vice-president Matt Tobin said about the company’s conference call with analysts. He said that has held prices over the quarter and that the company has seen “consistent ordering.”

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However, that has more to do with the measures lumber producers have taken to reduce supply than any improvement in U.S. housing starts, the key driver of North American lumber demand, according to industry analyst Keta Kosman, publisher of Madison’s Lumber Reporter.

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At West Fraser, for instance, it’s overall lumber production for 2026, 1.2 billion board feet for the first six months of this year, was 11 per cent lower than the same six months of 2025. The Canadian contribution to the total, however, of 440 million board feet, was a third lower than the same period of 2025.

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“The way that I look at it, in comparison to 10 or 15 years ago, is that mills are much more disciplined now,” Kosman said. “They cut their manufacturing volumes as demand is so low and they’re not losing (as much).”

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West Fraser’s own cuts included closing its 100 Mile House mill last December, which eliminated 165 jobs. That was in addition to the 2019 closure of a mill in Chasm, 54 kilometres to the south.

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In 2025, the company also closed a U.S. sawmill in Augusta, Georgia, at the same time as 100 Mile House, which eliminated 130 jobs.