Canadian and U.S. lumber producers faced a tough lumber market that saw more mill curtailments and closures than acquisitions or mill start-ups in 2019. North American lumber prices were stubbornly low, a function of soft U.S. demand that caused higher-cost regions to curtail and close mills. Of the top 30, nine Canada producers and seven U.S. producers recorded declines in output, a somewhat similar trend to 2018. The total mill count in the top 15 was lower in both Canada (-3) and the U.S. (-1) versus the previous year.