World sawn softwood markets are on an upward trajectory, according to speakers at the International Softwood Conference (ISC) held this week in Zurich.
The 130 delegates from 21 countries at the event also heard, however, that market recovery is slow and the “balance between supply and demand remains fragile”.
The conference was left in no doubt as to how severe the recession in the softwood sector has been, with Ed Pepke, the FAO/UNECE timber committee marketing specialist, presenting some stark figures in his statistical report. Within the countries represented by the ISC, production fell 12.1% in 2007/2008 and a further 14.5% the following year. Consumption dropped at the same time 13.7% and 16.8%.
This left output volume at 168 million m³ and consumption at 138 million m³ in 2009.
The slowness of the 2010 recovery was attributed to the lacklustre pick-up in construction, although, on a brighter note, repair and maintenance markets were showing greater robustness.
The forecasts for the year are for ISC country output to climb to 177 million m³ and consumption to reach 145.8 million m³ – rises of 5.8% and 5.5% respectively.
Delegates were not overly optimistic about 2011, but predicted that the softwood sawmilling sector would continue to recover.
The sector, said speakers, would be further boosted by the drive to sustainable construction, provided building environmental rating systems were “objective and unbiased”.
Concerns were expressed at rising raw materials costs due to the continuing low offer of logs, and the consensus was that these would have to be recuperated through sales prices.
The conference also called for wood promotion and education initiatives to be stepped up at European and wider international levels.
Next year’s ISC takes place in Copenhagen on October 20 and 21.
