The large softwood timber surplus in the US South is likely to diminish over the next decade, resulting in regional increases in sawlog prices.  The US South softwood timber resource is significant, cost-competitive, and increasingly crucial for the global supply of several forest products. In 2020, an estimated 12% of the world's conifer timber harvest was in this region. A large softwood timber inventory has built up in the southern US over the past 15 years. In 2000, timber harvests almost equaled net growth, but during the housing crisis and great recession in 2007-2009, lumber ...