October 2026 Lumber & Pallet Market Roundup

Impressionist painting of a northern Wisconsin forest in autumn with birch and pine trees beside a lake

Last updated: November 1, 2026

October was a busy month for anyone who buys wood packaging. Tariffs moved in both directions, lumber prices drifted to a two-year low, and diesel kept delivered costs up. Here’s our monthly roundup of what happened and what it means for pallet, crate and lumber buyers in Wisconsin and northern Illinois.

What we’re telling customers

  • Lumber is cheaper, but pallets aren’t, yet. Freight and diesel are driving delivered pallet prices more than lumber is right now. Delivered lumber isn’t necessarily cheaper either. Lumber at the mill might be cheaper, but freight is killing us.
  • Check where your crates and components come from. A new 50% tariff on certain Canadian wood boxes took effect Oct. 30.
  • Pallets weren’t part of the change. Wood pallets (HTS 4415.20) weren’t on the added or removed lists.
  • Exporters and importers: ISPM 15 paperwork keeps growing. France wants more information on wood packaging going in, and the U.S. is enforcing the ISPM 15 mark’s hyphen again on imports.

1. Canadian softwood duties cut to 24.75%

Commerce’s final review results, effective Oct. 19, cut combined antidumping and countervailing duties on most Canadian softwood lumber to 24.75%, or 34.75% with the 10% Section 232 tariff (Federal Register). That should ease costs on Canadian SPF used for pallets, crates and dunnage over time. There’s a catch: lumber imported in 2024 now owes the higher final rate plus interest, so not every importer sees a saving right away (The Conveyor).

2. New 50% tariff on Canadian wooden packing boxes

A White House proclamation changed the list of Canadian goods under the Section 338 tariff, effective 12:01 a.m. ET Oct. 30 (CBP CSMS #70314289). Thin plywood (6 mm or less), plastic crates and corrugated cartons came off. Solid-sided wooden packing boxes and cases (HTS 4415.10.30), thin MDF and softwood mouldings went on at 50%. Whether a specific crate falls under 4415.10.30 is a classification question, so if you buy enclosed export crates or wood boxes made in Canada, ask your customs broker. We covered the details in our Oct. 30 post.

3. Hardwood tariff decision still pending

Commerce owed the President an update on hardwood lumber imports by Oct. 1, but no decision on a hardwood Section 232 duty has been announced (Wood Central). Most Wisconsin pallets are built from local hardwood, so the bigger near-term factors are domestic supply and freight. We’ll cover this in more detail in an upcoming post.

4. China lists U.S. hardwood for possible tariff relief

China’s list of U.S. goods for possible tariff cuts includes hardwood lumber, logs and wood products, including pallets (Lesprom). Nothing is in force yet. If export demand recovers, it would help Lake States sawmills, though stronger demand for logs could also tighten the low-grade supply that pallets depend on.

5. Pallet prices: lumber down, diesel up

Fastmarkets reported low-grade lumber prices down about 4% month over month in most metros, but higher diesel and freight costs pushed new pallet delivered prices up (Fastmarkets). The BLS producer price index for wood pallets and containers rose to 361.825 in September from 356.438 in August (FRED). For buyers, softer lumber hasn’t turned into cheaper pallets. Delivered lumber isn’t necessarily cheaper either: lumber at the mill might be cheaper, but freight is killing us. That makes right-sizing and fuller trucks matter more than ever.

6. Lumber futures hit a two-year low

CME lumber futures settled at $507.50 on Oct. 27, the lowest since September 2024, before bouncing to $515.50 the next day (TradingView/Trading Economics, Investing.com). Madison’s framing lumber index slipped to $495 for the week ending Oct. 23 (Madison’s). It’s a good time for buyers to review pricing on lumber-heavy items like dunnage and blocking.

7. Weak housing, and mills taking capacity out

September housing starts fell 5.2% to a 1.22 million annual rate (NAHB). Producers are responding: one major producer announced on Oct. 28 that it will indefinitely curtail an OSB mill in Alabama and a lumber mill in Arkansas (company release), and another is idling OSB production in Texas (company release). Prices are soft for now, but less OSB and Southern pine capacity could firm crate-panel and pallet-lumber costs once demand returns.

8. France’s CHED-PP filing for exports, and the ISPM 15 hyphen rule for imports

Since Sept. 1, wood packaging that travels with SPS-controlled goods into France needs a TRACES CHED-PP notification listing the ISPM 15 treatment-plant numbers (BIFA). Confirm your French consignee is handling it. One more reminder on the mark itself: the pause on enforcing the ISPM 15 hyphen rule ended Dec. 31, 2025, and since Jan. 1 USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and U.S. Customs have been enforcing it again on wood packaging imported into the United States (USDA APHIS). The hyphen separates the country code from the producer number, as in US-12345, so check the stamps on any packaging coming into the U.S. Our ISPM 15 export compliance page explains the basics.

9. EU deforestation rules start Dec. 30

The EU Deforestation Regulation applies to large and medium operators from Dec. 30, 2026 (European Commission). EU customers may ask more questions about where the wood in your products and packaging comes from, so it helps to have sourcing records organized before then.

10. Good news for forests, and automation raising the bar

Brazil reported Amazon deforestation at its lowest level since records began in 1988 (Los Angeles Times), and at a UN meeting in Vienna, governments voted 83 to 12 to begin drafting a protocol against illegal timber and wildlife trade (EnviroLink). Closer to the dock, warehouse automation keeps raising the pallet quality bar: automated systems need pallets built to a documented spec (Pallet Enterprise). If you ship into automated distribution centers, a written spec for your custom wood pallets is the best protection against rejected loads.

Looking ahead to November

We’re watching for a hardwood Section 232 decision, the court challenge to the Section 338 tariffs, diesel prices and the Dec. 30 EUDR start. Less Waste. More Trees.

If any of this changes your packaging costs or export plans, we’re happy to take a look. Contact us or call 414-520-3366 for a free quote or packaging review.

Ryan Ziegler, Wisconsin Lumber & Pallet

Sources

  1. Federal Register, Certain Softwood Lumber Products From Canada: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, Oct 19, 2026: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/10/19/2026-21296/certain-softwood-lumber-products-from-canada-final-results-of-antidumping-duty-administrative-review
  2. The Conveyor, “Canadian softwood lumber duty cut: the 2024 bill”: https://www.theconveyor.co/p/canadian-softwood-lumber-duty-cut-2024-bill
  3. White House fact sheet, Section 338 modifications, Oct 2026: https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2026/10/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-further-modifies-canadian-products-subject-to-tariffs-under-section-338/
  4. White House proclamation Annex I (Part A removed; Part B added, incl. 4415.10.30): https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/2026ModifyingAuto338.prc_.AnnexI-3.pdf and CBP CSMS #70314289: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSCBP/bulletins/430e931
  5. Wood Central, “Hardwood Lumber Tariff Call Falls Due for Trump”: https://woodcentral.com.au/hardwood-lumber-tariff-deadline/
  6. Lesprom, “China includes U.S. hardwood lumber in tariff-cut product list”: https://www.lesprom.com/en/news/China_includes_U_S_hardwood_lumber_in_tariff-cut_product_list_124529/
  7. Fastmarkets, US Pallet Analytics sample (Oct 5, 2026): https://info.fastmarkets.com/rs/930-YSN-342/images/fx_USPA_0926_2026_10_05_18_22.pdf?version=0
  8. FRED / BLS PPI, Wood pallets and containers (WPU084101): https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/WPU084101
  9. TradingView / Trading Economics, “Lumber hits lowest level in over 2 years”: https://www.tradingview.com/news/te_news:595478:0-lumber-hits-lowest-level-in-over-2-years/
  10. Investing.com, Lumber futures historical data: https://www.investing.com/commodities/lumber-historical-data
  11. Madison’s Lumber Reporter, market updates: https://madisonsreport.com/lumber-market-updates/
  12. NAHB, September housing starts press release: https://www.nahb.org/news-and-economics/press-releases/2026/10/single-family-starts-down-as-affordability-challenges-persist
  13. West Fraser news release, Q3 2026 results and indefinite curtailments, Oct 28, 2026: https://www.westfraser.com/investors/news/news-releases/west-fraser-announces-third-quarter-2026-results-and-indefinite-curtailments-its-osb-and-lumber-portfolios
  14. LP news release, Jasper, Texas OSB curtailment: https://www.lpcorp.com/about-lp/media-resources/news-releases/lp-to-curtail-osb-production-at-jasper-texas-facility
  15. BIFA, “New French requirements for wooden packaging material,” Sept 1, 2026: https://bifa.org/2026/09/01/new-french-requirements-for-wooden-packaging-material-used-for-transporting-goods/
  16. European Commission, Regulation on deforestation-free products: https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/forests/deforestation/regulation-deforestation-free-products_en
  17. Los Angeles Times, “Brazil says Amazon deforestation fell to lowest level since 1988,” Oct 21, 2026: https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2026-10-21/brazil-says-amazon-deforestation-fell-to-lowest-level-since-1988
  18. EnviroLink, environmental briefing, Oct 27, 2026: https://www.envirolink.org/2026/10/27/lula-wins-brazil-runoff-vowing-to-protect-amazon-nations-agree-to-negotiate-environmental-crime-treaty-todays-environmental-briefing-for-tue-oct-27-2026/
  19. Pallet Enterprise, “Robots in the warehouses”: https://palletenterprise.com/robots-in-the-warehouses-how-the-retail-giant-automation-race-is-reshaping-palletization/
  20. USDA APHIS, “Stakeholder Reminder: Suspension of ISPM 15 Hyphen Requirement Ends December 31, 2025”: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/news/program-update/reminder-suspension-ispm-15-hyphen-requirement-ends-december-31-2025