Volumes reduced by around 190,000m3 compared to a year ago, with only chipboard bucking the downward trend.
Softwood import volumes reduced by 6% and hardwood by 14%, while plywood saw a 3% reverse and OSB and MDF saw dips of 37% and 5% respectively. The TTF attributed the softwood import decline to significantly lower shipments from Sweden.
Total softwood imports were 157,000m3 lower, of which Sweden accounted for 137,000m3. The value of sawn softwood was lower by nearly 5% and planed goods’ value fell by 7%. Redwood imports were actually marginally up.
Of the countries with sizeable UK hardwood export volumes, only France and Estonia increased their shipments. The market share growth for the US was only by way of other supplier nations losing volumes. Total hardwood import amounted to 191,000m3.
In the hardwood plywood sector, only Russia and Finland increased their UK volumes (6% and 9.5% respectively). Chinese and Malaysian volumes were down 6% and 7% respectively.
Chipboard was the one growth sector, up 31% on a year ago to 276,000m3. Spain and Portugal saw a big spike in volumes, seeing a near doubling and a tripling respectively.
German volumes increased by 10% but the country’s market share declined because of the popularity of Iberian chipboard. June was the sixth month in a row where volumes were higher than in the corresponding period of 2012.
For more details on the TTF statistics bulletin see www.ttf.co.uk.
