---
title: Why are forest products and scrap metals diverging?
description: In the forest products sector, you’re seeing a preference for truck freight wanting to get product quicker than the carload market can supply it.
image: https://ask.ftrintel.com/hubfs/AskTheExperts_FeaturedImages-04.jpg
---

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# Why are forest products and scrap metals diverging?

Posted by [The FTR Experts](https://ask.ftrintel.com/author/experts) on Dec 19, 2020 3:09:00 PM

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**The FTR Experts were posed with the question, "Why are forest products and scrap metals diverging?"**

Following *The 2021 Outlook*, the final session of the[ FTR Engage](https://freight.ftrintel.com/ftrengage) virtual speaking series, the FTR Experts sat down to answer listener questions beyond what was covered during the Q&A within the presentation.

 

**Key Takeaways:**

- The forest products sector wants product quickly, creating a preference for truck freight. Modal shift in forest is particularly for lumber and wood.
- There are underly economic drivers, record-low mortgage rates, and people wanting extra space in their home for work and school.
- Metal scrap is seeing strong demand to bring goods to market and use scrap in the manufacturing process. Metal scrap is an outlier and a source of strength. 
- Scrap metal movements are a good underlying indicator of the health of manufacturing. 
- Scrap prices being up also incentivizes scrapping of cars. 

 

Listen to the full discussion on the [State of Freight Podcast](https://www.ftrintel.com/podcast#SpecialEpisodes) or read the fully transcribed Q&A on the [FTR Blog](https://www.ftrintel.com/blog/2021outlook/).

 Tags: [carload](https://ask.ftrintel.com/tag/carload), [forest product](https://ask.ftrintel.com/tag/forest-product), [scrap metal](https://ask.ftrintel.com/tag/scrap-metal)

 

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