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Country Market Update: Ireland | 19


SUMMARY


■Low construction timber demand is impacting Ireland’s sawmilling sector


■January and February were reasonable months but March was disappointing


■The Easter surge in fencing demand didn’t happen this year


■There has been an increase in spot selling


DOUBLE TROUBLE


Ireland’s sawmilling sector is suffering the twin pains of low demand and high costs, but it remains resilient. Sally Spencer reports


Recent statistics from Timber Development UK (TDUK), released in April, indicate a 13% uplift in exports of softwood from the Republic of Ireland to the UK in January this year over January 2022. At face value that could suggest that business is booming for Ireland’s sawmilling sector although, of course, the market is much more nuanced than that.


For example, demand for construction


timber, which was described as virtually non-existent at the time of the last Ireland market report (TTJ November/December 2022) remains very sluggish.


“The construction sector is hugely challenged at the moment,” said one major sawmiller. “People are nervous about where interest rates are going and buyers are nervous about house prices. There is also still plenty of available material out of Scandinavia.”


He added that there may be some light at the end of the tunnel, which is that US housing starts have begun to increase and may get to a place where they attract Scandinavian imports again, thus leaving more space for Irish timber to fill UK demand.


Above: Mills are keeping up production levels


Another major sawmiller was uncharacteristically gloomy, however, saying that demand had been flat across all product sectors. “We were half optimistic in February because there was a bit more activity in January and February because customers had destocked considerably in the last quarter of 2022 and were at such low levels they had to order. Unfortunately that took a massive dip again in March and the demand really hasn’t been there.” ►


www.ttjonline.com | May/June 2023 | TTJ


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