Finnish forest industry softwood log purchases from privately owned forests halved during 2008 due to weakening in the sawmilling sector, according to the Finnish Forest Industries Federation (FFIF).
Total procurement from privately-owned forests was 38.5 million m³. Overall, timber purchases were below the five-year average and 27% below the record volume achieved in 2007.
But FFIF said the proportion of timber sourced in Finland would increase substantially in the long-term because of government tax reductions on timber sales and as unprofitable Russian imports declined.
