European softwood lumber prices entered the autumn with relatively little movement, but conditions underneath the headline numbers are becoming less comfortable for both mills and buyers.<\/p>\n
Across Germany, France, Benelux and the UK, Nordic spruce prices remain close to summer levels, while competition for spot orders is becoming more visible. Producers are trying to protect margins against still-high sawlog and logistics costs, while buyers continue to purchase cautiously and avoid rebuilding inventories too quickly.<\/p>\n
GWMI's current market indications point to relatively narrow price movements across most major European destinations, although differences between countries are widening.<\/p>\n
One European trader described the market as increasingly competitive, with more offers appearing despite mills continuing to argue that stocks remain tight. Another participant said current stability is fragile rather than comfortable, as weak demand prevents increases while production costs leave little room for further reductions.<\/p>\n
Germany remains balanced by restricted output<\/strong><\/p>\n In Germany, standard spruce sizes are generally indicated at around \u20ac300\u2013330\/m\u00b3 delivered.<\/p>\n Competition is more visible in spot business, but limited sawlog availability is still restricting production at some mills and preventing a larger build-up of finished stocks.<\/p>\n A German market participant said shortages of sawlogs are keeping output below normal maximum capacity, helping to balance a market that would otherwise face greater pressure from weak demand.<\/p>\n France slightly firmer<\/strong><\/p>\n France currently carries a somewhat firmer tone.<\/p>\n GWMI indicative levels for Nordic spruce are mostly around \u20ac305\u2013345\/m\u00b3 depending on dimension and destination. Market participants reported modest strengthening in several spruce specifications during August.<\/p>\n Freight remains particularly important in France. Delivered prices can differ by around \u20ac25\/m\u00b3 between northern and southern destinations, making comparisons between transactions increasingly difficult.<\/p>\n GWMI European softwood lumber market indications<\/strong><\/p>\n Netherlands and Belgium diverge<\/strong><\/p>\n The Netherlands and Belgium continue to behave differently despite their geographical proximity.<\/p>\n Dutch demand improved towards the end of the summer, with several suppliers reporting stronger enquiries. Belgium remains considerably more competitive, with lower offers often required to secure relatively small orders.<\/p>\n One European supplier contacted by GWMI said demand had strengthened noticeably in the Netherlands late in the period, while Belgian buyers remained considerably more price-sensitive.<\/p>\n The underlying construction picture remains weak, however. Dutch housing completions continue to fall substantially short of official targets, limiting the amount of immediate timber demand entering the market.<\/p>\n UK stocks remain lean<\/strong><\/p>\n The UK market is operating with particularly low inventories.<\/p>\n Importers have generally avoided building large stocks and continue to purchase close to immediate requirements. One UK market participant described purchasing patterns as effectively hand-to-mouth. Text lipit<\/p>\n That provides some protection against a rapid fall in spruce prices despite weak construction activity.<\/p>\n Pine remains more exposed to pressure. Nordic suppliers generally describe spruce as easier to sell, while pine availability is higher relative to current demand.<\/p>\n US market remains difficult for European exporters<\/strong><\/p>\n European exporters continue to face a less attractive US market, particularly for standard 2\u00d74 material. GWMI indications point to a wide gap between standard 2\u00d74 spruce and larger dimensions, where more specialised demand continues to support higher prices.<\/p>\n Sawlog costs still limit price flexibility<\/strong><\/p>\n Raw material remains the main reason mills are resisting further reductions. In Finland, average standing-sale prices in August stood at \u20ac77.35\/m\u00b3 for pine sawlogs and \u20ac83.25\/m\u00b3 for spruce sawlogs.<\/p>\n Pine prices fell only slightly from July, while spruce was virtually unchanged. Trading activity recovered after the summer holiday period but remained significantly below the previous year's level.<\/p>\n Swedish sawlog prices have fallen more clearly. Second-quarter prices declined 12% quarter on quarter for pine and 9% for spruce, reaching SEK 855\/m\u00b3 and SEK 1,059\/m\u00b3 respectively.<\/p>\n Even after these declines, market participants continue to regard Swedish raw material costs as high relative to current softwood lumber prices.<\/p>\n Capacity cuts begin to remove supply<\/strong><\/p>\n The pressure on sawmill margins is increasingly visible in production decisions.<\/p>\n Stora Enso is closing the Veitsiluoto sawmill in northern Finland, removing around 200,000 m\u00b3\/year of capacity. Moelven will discontinue production at \u00c5rj\u00e4ng in Sweden, reducing supply by another 110,000 m\u00b3\/year. Both companies have pointed to difficult market conditions and high raw material costs as important factors behind their decisions.<\/p>\n The capacity reductions provide some support to a market that would otherwise be facing much greater supply pressure.<\/p>\n Spruce remains easier to sell than pine<\/strong><\/p>\n The distinction between spruce and pine is becoming increasingly important entering Q4.<\/p>\n Nordic market participants generally describe spruce demand as relatively stable, while pine faces more pressure from available supply.<\/p>\n Customer stocks also appear to be below normal in several markets, creating the possibility of modest restocking as the fourth quarter progresses.\u00a0 Suppliers in the Netherlands are attempting to carry third-quarter pricing into Q4, and most customers are so far accepting this approach.<\/p>\n Smaller mills, however, continue to test lower prices in spot business.<\/p>\n No clear direction entering Q4<\/strong><\/p>\n The European market therefore enters Q4 without a strong directional signal. Weak construction demand makes significant price increases difficult, while high sawlog costs and capacity reductions limit the potential for a broad price decline.<\/p>\n The most likely near-term pattern is continued stability in spruce, accompanied by greater competition in pine and spot business. For mills, the central problem remains margins rather than volume alone. For buyers, the question is whether current low inventories can be maintained if construction activity improves even modestly.<\/p>\n That balance will determine whether the apparent stability of the European softwood lumber market survives the final quarter of the year.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" European softwood lumber prices entered the autumn with relatively little movement, but conditions underneath the headline numbers are becoming less comfortable for both mills and buyers.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":100116,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5204],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n
\n \nMarket<\/th>\n Product<\/th>\n GWMI indicative range<\/th>\n Direction<\/th>\n Market view<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n \n Germania<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Germania<\/td>\n Spruce 44\u201350 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac300\u2013330\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Slightly lower<\/td>\n More competitive spot offers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Germania<\/td>\n Spruce 63 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac300\u2013330\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Limited movement<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Germania<\/td>\n Spruce 50 \u00d7 100 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac300\u2013325\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Mills reluctant to reduce further<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Fran\u021ba<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Fran\u021ba<\/td>\n Spruce 44\u201350 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac310\u2013345\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Firm<\/td>\n Better tone than Germany<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Fran\u021ba<\/td>\n Spruce 63 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac305\u2013340\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Firm<\/td>\n Offers broadly holding<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Fran\u021ba<\/td>\n Spruce 50 \u00d7 100 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac305\u2013340\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Firm<\/td>\n Modest upward pressure<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Netherlands and Belgium<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Netherlands<\/td>\n Spruce 47 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac305\u2013330\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Demand improved late in the period<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Netherlands<\/td>\n Spruce 50 \u00d7 100 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac305\u2013330\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Selective buying<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Netherlands<\/td>\n Planed construction timber 50 \u00d7 75 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac355\u2013385\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Premium maintained<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Belgia<\/td>\n Standard Nordic spruce<\/td>\n \u20ac295\u2013320\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Soft<\/td>\n Strong competition for orders<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n Spruce 44\u201350 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac295\u2013315\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable \/ soft<\/td>\n Low inventories, short purchasing cycles<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n Spruce 50 \u00d7 100 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac290\u2013315\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Weak demand but lean stocks<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n Pine US 50 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac300\u2013325\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Pine harder to place than spruce<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n Pine V 38 \u00d7 150 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac270\u2013295\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Soft<\/td>\n Supply pressure remains<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n Pine V 25 \u00d7 100 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac270\u2013295\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable \/ soft<\/td>\n Limited buying interest<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n United Kingdom<\/td>\n Pine VI 25 \u00d7 125 mm<\/td>\n \u20ac220\u2013235\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n Price-sensitive segment<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n \n\n
\n \nProduct<\/th>\n GWMI indicative range<\/th>\n Direction<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n \n European kiln-dried spruce 2 \u00d7 4, 16 ft<\/td>\n $267\u2013284\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Lower<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n European kiln-dried spruce 2 \u00d7 4<\/td>\n $377\u2013398\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n European kiln-dried spruce 2 \u00d7 6<\/td>\n $407\u2013432\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n European kiln-dried spruce 2 \u00d7 8<\/td>\n $470\u2013500\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n European kiln-dried spruce 2 \u00d7 10<\/td>\n $532\u2013568\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n European kiln-dried spruce 2 \u00d7 12<\/td>\n $593\u2013636\/m\u00b3<\/td>\n Stable<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\nThe market is not strong, but neither is supply loose enough to force a major correction.<\/p>\n