Importers face unprecedented supply pressures. A report from ETTF (European Timber Trade Federation) Newsletter-3.
Importers Europe-wide say they are facing some of the most acute supply challenges of their careers across the range of timber and wood products. Businesses attribute the situation to a unique combination of factors. Chief among them is demand surging worldwide, notably from construction, as countries have gradually eased Covid-19 lockdown rules and economies have begun to rebound. This has combined with production levels from many suppliers worldwide, of softwood, hardwood and sheet materials, still being restricted by pandemic safe work practices and shortage of workers due to sickness or isolation rules. It has also taken some mills time to gear up production having been in temporary full or partial shutdown in the health crisis, said a plywood importer. Raw materials shortages too have affected various sources of supply. A wet early winter restricted softwood harvesting in northern Europe. The situation was then compounded when freezing conditions followed at the start [...]
