CHICAGO (Reuters) – ANALYSIS – When the U.S. housing market was booming earlier this decade, lumber prices were too. When the housing market went into a slump so, too, did lumber.

Now, with nascent signs of a housing recovery, it’s natural to assume lumber prices will follow suit.

But experts say that it may be years before lumber recovers in any substantive way, thanks mostly to conservative production mixed with unpredictable demand.