The Framing Lumber Composite Price published by the US news service Random Lengths rose at the beginning of December to a figure of $362/1,000 bdft, falling only $5 short of the last record level reached on 30 April 2010. Positive sales stimuli arose mainly as a result of brisk business activity in exports to China. Domestic merchants’ stock-replenishment purchases were also stoking the upward trend in US softwood lumber prices at the beginning of December.