Review of Timber Market 2018

Last year, export of industrial roundwood from Lithuania grew by 40%, especially to Scandinavia. Pulpwood produced in state forests demonstrated the highest price increase, i.e. by 56%. These timber products are not processed according to the original assignment of the assortment in Lithuania. Its demand was boosted last year by the pulp mills, which have recently started operating in Scandinavia, using pulpwood as their raw materials.
The changes in the Lithuanian timber market last year were the same as in the neighbouring countries and the region. In 2018, timber prices climbed to the top in Lithuania, as well as across Europe, and were the highest over the decade. According to experts, timber products are becoming more and more important, as the EU aims to prohibit disposable plastic packaging from 2021 and encourages the use of recyclable packaging such as paper packaging.

Timber market in numbers

• The prices of industrial wood in the rough were increasing all over Europe in 2018: the price of sawlogs increased by 11.3% in Sweden, 3% in Finland, 15% in Estonia, and 14% in Latvia.
• In Lithuania, the price of sawlogs increased by 16% during the year.
• The value of the Baltpool Timber Spot Lithuania index amounted to 43.92 EUR/m3 on 18 February 2018.
• In 2018, export of industrial roundwood grew by 40%, especially to Scandinavia.
• In 2018, import of industrial roundwood shrunk by 22%.
• During the period of final felling rate in state forests from 2014 to 2018, 2% more timber was harvested than during the period from 2009 to 2013.
• 50% of harvested roundwood are logs (sawlogs and packing logs).