The head of Canada’s leading distributor of building materials said his company is “COVID-lucky” as it continues reaping big gains from a surge in pricing.

Amar Doman, chair and chief executive officer of CanWel Building Materials Group, said in a broadcast interview Wednesday high demand for the company’s products shows no signs of stopping as construction and home renovation activity in North America continues to ramp up amid the pandemic.

“All our spigots are on,” Doman said. “We’re completely busy both sides of the border. I have never seen business be stronger and I’ve been in this for 32 years.”

Last month, CanWel reported first-quarter revenue surged 59 per cent from the same period in 2020 to $519 million. EBITDA soared 253 per cent to just over $60 million.

The company has benefitted from lumber prices that have skyrocketed due to the combination of high demand and lower inventories, with producers struggling to catch up following the scaling back of operations caused by COVID restrictions.

Most commodities have seen increased demand so far in 2021, as the global economy continues to bounce back from the pandemic.

Doman said he expects the company will continue to perform extremely well for the rest of the year.

“Our inventories are at record lows as are our customers’,” he said. “It’s a phenomenon that we think has got another six to nine months at least in it.”