Lumber prices in Japan are soaring in the wake of the Ukraine war. The shortage that began last year was exacerbated as Russia stopped exporting some of its lumber to Japan, in retaliation for the sanctions Japan imposed on Russia.  Prices for plywood and lumber in Japan have risen 10% to 20% in the last three months, leading to moves to raise housing prices. Some analysts in the Japanese wood industry believe this is a case of “wood shock,” a global surge in lumber prices caused by a decrease in the supply of timber.  The term ...