Prince George, B.C.- The financial meltdown in the United States continues to impact lumber industries on this side of the border.

 

 

West Fraser has recorded a net loss of $2 million dollars in the third quarter, which brings the year to date losses to $68 million dollars.

That compares to a year to date loss in 2007 of $31 million dollars.

 

In the report, West Fraser CEO Hank Ketcham says  the industry as a whole continues to face challenges “Our results continue to reflect very challenging times. We continue to focus on cost control, efficiencies and cash preservation in response to this very severe downturn.”

 

Ketcham says the financial and credit crisis accelerated late in the current quarter which has increased uncertainty with respect to West Fraser’s key markets.  “The nature and length of this downturn is unprecedented for our industry. Given the current state of the U.S. financial and credit markets, we do not see any significant improvement in the near term.”