Lumber prices have fallen 34.9% since crypto exchanges first listed crypto-native lumber contracts, according to Protos. The outlet framed the move against the backdrop of early 2021, when lumber was surging during the COVID housing boom as home renovation demand climbed while quarantines and supply-chain disruptions constrained supply. At the time, using blockchain tools to tokenize, trade, or track an off-chain commodity was presented as a fresh use case.
FTX launched its lumber future in May 2021
Protos said FTX launched its lumber future on May 6, 2021. Since that launch, the US dollar price of lumber has declined 34.9%. The report added that the drop would be larger in inflation-adjusted terms after purchasing power deteriorated over roughly half a decade.
Protos also said it had previously reported roughly $23 million in lumber trading on FTX during the first several days after launch.
BLS index shows the retreat from the 2021 peak
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics’ seasonally adjusted lumber index stood at 455.4 in May 2021, which Protos identified as the peak of the series. By July 2026, that reading had fallen to 296.4.
The report also cited a September 2, 2026 post from Barchart on X saying lumber had fallen to its lowest price of the year and was approaching a bear market after dropping 17% from its July high.
Lumber pricing is not uniform across the market
Protos noted that lumber is a broad category rather than a single homogeneous product. Cash quotes can differ widely depending on the species, grade, dimensions, delivery point, quality, and location of the wood being priced.
CME changed the contract structure in 2022
The report said CME also revised its lumber futures contract in August 2022 and set a sunset period that ended in May 2023. The legacy Random Length Lumber future covered 110,000 board feet and sourced delivery from western mills.
The replacement contract covers 27,500 board feet, delivers to Chicago, and began trading on August 8, 2022. CME delisted the old contract in May 2023 after the sunsetting process ended.
That means any continuous chart stitching the two contracts together crosses a real break in contract specifications. Still, both contracts are quoted in US dollars per 1,000 board feet, which Protos said allows technicians to build an apples-to-apples, though stitched, chart of lumber prices over time.