Region Focus: North America | 33


The US exported 327,000m3


of hardwood


lumber worth US$230.3m to Europe in 2025. Export quantity was 1% less than the previous year, while export value increased by 2%. This apparent stability has been maintained into 2026, with export quantity at 83,900m3 Q1 last year.


The war in Ukraine has led to a massive decline in imports from Russia, Ukraine, and other non-EU countries in eastern Europe. The UK remains the most important US hardwoods market in Europe. With exports of 130,000m3


in 2025, 1% more than the in Q1 2026, almost equivalent to


US hardwood exports to Europe have been maintained despite recent trade tensions. There were times when it seemed that retaliatory tariffs might result in the trade hitting a brick wall.


But concerns have abated following tariff agreements with the UK in May 2025 and the EU in August 2025.


Looking at exports to Europe by species in 2025, a slight decline in white oak (-1% to 155,900m3


(-9% to 66,000m3 18,300m3


oak to 57,400m3


) and steeper falls in tulipwood ) and ash (-10% to


), were offset by a 16% gain in red .


. Of smaller traded species, there was a recovery in maple (+16% to 3,400m3


Exports of walnut were unchanged at 18,300m3


),


but others declined including hickory (-20% to 3,400m3


), cherry (-29% to 500m3


alder (-3% to 200m3 9,500m3


).


In Q1 this year, declining exports to Europe of white oak (-6% to 37,200m3 (-8% to 14,300m3


) and red oak


exports of tulipwood (+8% to 16,200m3 (+51% to 6,500m3 5,900m3


).


The relative stability of US exports to Europe in the last 15 months, following a 6% volume gain in 2024, has bucked a wider downturn in European hardwood lumber imports. US share of total EU27+UK imports was 22.4% in 2025, up from 22.1% the previous year and 15% in 2019. While European imports of US hardwood lumber made moderate gains in 2025, imports of hardwood from elsewhere fell. Total EU+UK imports of hardwood lumber


), have been offset by rising ), ash


), and walnut (+53% to 15,000 10,000 5,000 0 White Oak Tulipwood Ash 2024 U.S. hardwood lumber exports to Europe by destination, Jan to Mar 2024 UK EU27


Germany Italy


Spain


Portugal Ireland Estonia Sweden Greece


Source: AHEC analysis of USDA GATS


29.2 50.7 9.3


10.1 7.5 4.5 3.6 1.4 2.3 1.7


Quantity 1000 m3 2025


37.2 44.5 9.0 9.3 4.1


4.8 2.9 2.3 1.2 2.0


30.5 52.8 9.3 8.4 6.3 6.1 4.1 3.8 2.9 2.2


Value $million 2026


% change 25/26


-18% 19% 4%


-9% 53% 28% 40% 66%


138% 15%


2024


19.2 35.8 6.8 6.6 4.8 3.7 2.4 0.9 1.6 1.4


2025


24.2 32.3 6.4 6.6 2.9 3.6 2.1 1.7 0.9 1.6


2026


20.9 39.3 7.3 6.4 4.3 4.7 2.7 2.5 2.2 1.9


% change 25/26


-13% 22% 14% -3% 52% 29% 30% 49%


142% 14%


2025 Walnut 2026 Red Oak Other 20,000 ), red ), and “other” (-12% to


V&A East benches in No.1 Common red oak. Photography by Thom Atkinson


fell 2% to 1.43 million m3 following a 9%


fall the previous year. Imports of tropical hardwood lumber were up 2% at 801,000m3 in 2025, but this followed a 14% decline in 2024 to the lowest level recorded. EU+UK imports of temperate hardwood lumber from countries other than the US were 311,000m3


,


down 11% on the previous year and less than one third of the level in 2021.


previous year, the UK accounted for 40% of all US hardwood lumber exports to Europe, up from 39% the previous year and 34% in 2023. Exports to the UK in Q1 were 30,500m3


, 18% less than a year before. But this is still three times the 9,300m3 destined for Germany, the next largest European market .


The US accounted for around 25% of all hardwood lumber imported into the UK in 2025, the same proportion as the previous year, and up from 21% in 2023. In volume terms, around 56% of all hardwood imports into the UK came from the EU in 2025, up from 55% the previous year.


The share of UK hardwood lumber imports from the tropics was 16% in 2025, down from 17% the previous year .


US exports of white oak to the UK were 75,200m3


US hardwood lumber exports to the UK by species: Q1 2024-2026, 1000m3 25,000


in 2025, a decline of 2% following


www.ttjonline.com | Summer 2026 | TTJ


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