UK imports of timber products were 3% higher in the first two months of 2016 compared to the same period of 2015, according to the latest Timber Trade Federation Statistical Bulletin.
Growth was driven largely by plywood and other panel products, while solid wood imports have dropped.
Import volume in the first two months of 2016 was around 46,000m3 higher than for the first two months of 2015, but this was mostly due to substantially higher volumes of plywood imported in 2016 in these two months. The overall volume of the main timber and panel products imported from January to February 2016 was around 1.5 million m3.
The TTF Bulletin also shows marked fluctuation in products prices both on a month by month and year by year basis. For example, in relation to the average price of a “basket” of imported softwood, the 12-month period between March 2014 and February 2015 showed a drop of 7.9%.
Source: UK TTF
