Statistics Update: TTF UK Imports | 13
RECORD IMPORT VOLUMES IN Q3
Latest TTF stats show timber import records continued to be broken in 2021 SUMMARY
■ Import volumes in Q3 reached 3.3 million m3
■ Softwood imports for January- September were 39.4% up on the same 2020 period
■ The value of all softwood imports in the period increased by 125%
■ Hardwood imports from Lithuania were up 211%
nine month period increased by 125%, with the value of sawn goods up 108% and planed goods up 148%.
Hardwood imports were also up, with a 27% rise on the January-September 2020 figure. Cumulative volume for January- September 2021 was 405,000m3 319,000m3
(2020: ).
All the leading countries of supply increased their shipments to the UK, with standout figures over the nine month period coming from Latvia (up 87%), Ireland (up 71%) and Lithuania (up 211%). Imports from Cameroon were up by 54%, while those from the US were up 20%.
Import volumes in the third quarter of 2021 reached record levels at 3.3 million m3
.
All of the main timber and panel products achieved double digit growth rates to the end of September and all imports from January- September were 34% up.
Those statistics are revealed in the latest figures from the Timber Trade Federation (TTF) and TTF Timber Industry Facts & Figures, December 2021 goes on to say that the volume of timber and panel imports in Q3 2021 were nearly 23% higher than in Q3 2020. “This completes four quarters of very high growth since Q4 2020,” said the TTF. Softwood imports in the January- September year-on-year comparison were up 39.4% on 2020, with cumulative volume for the 2021 period at 6,226,000m3 4,464,000m3
(2020: ).
The high demand in the UK resulted in increased volumes shipped by three of the leading countries of supply – Latvia, Finland and Germany – which together accounted for more than 1.1 million m3 m3
of the 1.8 million
more that was supplied between January- September 2021.
Sweden also increased its supply to the UK – by 15% – but the triple digit growth rates of some of the other supplier countries meant that Sweden’s share of supply fell from 42% in January-September 2020 to 34% in the equivalent period in 2021.
The value of all softwood imports in the
All plywood imports were up 17.5% in the January-September comparison periods, with cumulative volume for the first nine months of 2021 at 1,211,000m3
(2020: 1,030,000m3
Within this overall figure, hardwood plywood imports were up 27%, with cumulative volume at 844,000m3 665,000m3
).
Along with other leading hardwood plywood suppliers, Russia has upped its volumes to the UK – but only by 0.3%, compared to an 162% increase from Finland. Shipments of hardwood plywood from China were up by 21% and while its share of
(2020: )
supply to the UK fell from 63% to 60% in the comparison periods, it still accounts for more than half of the total increase in hardwood plywood imports in the first nine months of 2021.
Softwood plywood imports were up by a more modest 0.3%, with cumulative volume from January-September at 367,000m3 (2020: 366,000m3
). Whilst the overall figure
remains similar to last year, the make-up of the volume has changed significantly, with volume lost from Brazil being made up for by volumes from China and Finland. There were also losses in volume from South Africa, Chile and France and increases from Uruguay, Russia and Poland.
Chipboard imports were up 21% in the comparison period, with cumulative value at 508,000m3
(2020: 418,000m3 ). The majority
of the increase has come from Germany and Portugal, with both countries exporting around 37,000m3
more over the period.
Supply from Belgium was up by 11% but volume from France was down by 12%. OSB imports were up by 38.7%, with cumulative volume at 379,000m3 274,000m3
(2020:
). Meanwhile, MDF imports were up by 34.6%, with cumulative volume at 672,000m3
(2020: 499,000m3 Softwood Imports by Main Country, Jan - Sep
10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
0 5
42.0 34.0 Sweden
20.0 21.0 Latvia
11.0 14.0 Finland
8.0 11.0 Germany
6.0 4.0 Irish Republic ). ■
2020 2021
6.0 5.0 Russia
The TTF is the UK’s foremost membership body for the timber supply chain. Its members constitute timber importers, merchants, agents and manufacturers and account for around two-thirds of the £10bn UK timber industry.
www.ttjonline.com | January/February 2022 | TTJ
% of Total
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