Australia’s imports of sawn softwood rose 58.8% in 2021-22 compared with the prior financial year. Imports are almost entirely structural grades and rose to a little over 964,000 m3 for the full year. Source: IndustryEdge
Interrogation of the latest data on IndustryEdge’s Wood Market edge online platform shows the largest increases in supply were delivered by major European producing nations. Shipments from Germany increased 144% to more than 202,000 m3 for the full year, while Lithuanian supply increased nearly 200% to a little over 114,000 m3. Among the majors, the sole importing nation to see its contribution decline was New Zealand (-12.0%) but still up on two years earlier.
Australian Imports of Sawn Softwood by Country of Origin:
2019-20 to 2021-22 (tonnes & %)
The last two years has underscored the importance of integrating international supply to the Australian market if demand is to be met over the longer term. IndustryEdge’s widely expressed view is that timber supply is not a magic pudding that materialises on demand. Whether it is domestic or international supply, the entire supply chain needs to be broadly cooperative to ensure demand is met. The recent boom in imports is a great case in example of the supply understanding the market demand and doing all it can to meet the market.
Many in the supply chain have turned their attention to engineered wood product supply, especially laminated veneer lumber (LVL) and the other post and beam products like glue laminated timber (GLT) that have experienced demand growth but are confronted by very unstable supply due to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
For more information visit: www.industryedge.com.au
