Lumber prices have come crashing down in a new sign of how rising interest rates are deflating markets that boomed during the pandemic. …Lumber futures for July delivery ended Friday at $695.10 per thousand board feet, down 52% from a high in early March. On-the-spot wood prices have plunged, too… falling about 12% last week to end at $794. That is down from $1,334 in March, just before the Fed raised interest rates for the first time since 2018. The Fed raised rates again this month and is expected to continue to lift borrowing costs. …Besides home construction, lumber traders and analysts are eyeing the aisles of Home Depot and Lowe’s. They are looking for signs that consumers are shifting spending away from home-improvement projects to entertainment and vacations. An especially sharp plunge in the price of Southern yellow pine—favoured by treaters, deck builders and do-it-yourselfers—hints at a slowdown in the repair-and-remodeling segment. [to access the full story a WSJ subscription is required]