United Kingdom lumber consumption in 2013 totalled 8.4 million, with 90 per cent of that softwoods. Import volumes have increased by 4.3 per cent in 2013, and will increase even stronger in 2014. The UK consumes nearly 5 million cubic metres of wood per year, 57 per cent of that imported.
All this favourable economic context is helping the lumber industry which has registered high levels of imports at the start of this year. Therefore, according to the latest Eurostat statistics, the UK has purchased, in value, a quarter more softwood lumber from the European Union countries in the first four months of 2014, if compared to the same period of 2013. UK bought €372 million worth of softwood lumber from the EU, an increase of €70 million over January-April 2013.
UK Wood Imports
Purchases from almost all major UK European trade partners rose in 2013. Traditionally, Sweden is UK’s main source of lumber and in January-April Swedish exports stepped-up by 27 per cent. Latvia overpassed Finland and became the second exporter with a year-on-year rise of almost 50 per cent. Surprisingly, purchases from neighbour country, Ireland, dipped by 4 per cent, while imports from Germany jumped 12 per cent.