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– German specialist timber traders achieved a 14% year-on-year growth in revenues in the first half of 2011, according to an intercompany comparison conducted by the Berlin-based German Timber Trade Federation (GD Holz). Revenues had increased 13% in the first quarter in a trend that thus continued in the second quarter. This growth was bolstered by stronger demand and dynamic construction activity reported by GD Holz as well as by higher prices instituted for key grades offered by specialist timber merchants, especially for lumber and wood-based panels. Business activity also picked up much earlier this year than in 2010 after a short winter, meaning that an underlying effect played its part.
Very large jumps in turnover were recorded for types of timber that had become more expensive compared with the overall range. For instance, lumber revenues were 18% higher than last year. The garden wood sector fared even better with a 20% leap in turnover, something that GD Holz primarily attributed to a significant increase in the range of patio flooring in recent years. The building component business, which for specialist merchants mainly consists of interior doors, delivered a 14% rise in turnover. The wood flooring business fared better than last year with an 8% improvement. GD Holz did not report the rates of change in turnover from wood-based panels and planed products in the first half of the year. The organisation did not publish separate rates of change for any of the product groups covered by the intercompany comparison in the second quarter.
Monthly rates of change were solely published for each product group for the first quarter; cumulative figures were not released. Lumber revenues grew 19% (January), 22% (February) and 8% (March) in the first three months. Turnover from planed goods rose most sharply in February with a growth rate of 30%; increases of 17% and 16% were recorded for January and March, respectively. Wood-based panels, an area that generated the largest revenues, ended the first three months with growth rates of +23%, +31% and +16%. The very strong growth in February revenues from these three building-related product groups is primarily due to the much earlier start to the construction season this year. By contrast, January was the strongest month in the first quarter for the building component and flooring businesses. The building components business began the year with a 19%, but then saw the growth rate slow in the next two months to +16% and +6%. The flooring business improved its turnover by 20% in the first month of the year compared with January 2010, was broadly in line with the same month in 2010 in February and saw revenues drop 6% in March. The intercompany comparison showed that the garden wood sector displayed steady growth with rates of 35%, 36% and 36% in the first three months. However, the second quarter turned out to be much weaker than the same quarter in 2010, with a growth rate of just 20% in the first half as a whole. The interior door business, which is part of the building components category, seems to have grown at a similar pace in the second quarter as in the first three months according to the available figures. The second quarter apparently proved a little better for lumber and flooring.
GD Holz and the members participating in the intercompany comparison were more cautious about the outlook for the year as a whole given that the high growth rates seen in the first quarter and the first half of the year were strongly influenced by the underlying effects and price increases. Revenues are expected to edge 3-5% higher in 2011 as a whole when adjusted for prices.
31.08.2011
Roundwood/Sawnwood
- Prices for eastern Siberian larch lumber remain largely stable in August despite holiday season
- 10 % reduction registered in Russian lumber exports
- Felling in Russia in July 2011 lower than in June
- Northwest Russian spruce lumber continues to lose market shares within Central Europe
- Latvian roundwood exports increased by as much as 26.1%
- Felling practically no longer hampered by forest fires
- Finland: Growth recorded in softwood lumber output until June
- United Business Media takes over Ecobuild
- Finland: Log deliveries still below last year‘s level
- Softwood lumber shipments down in North America in the second quarter
- Further growth in softwood lumber output until March
- Brisk demand for logs keeping price situation largely stable in Austria
- Hardwood lumber markets in UNECE revived slightly in 2010
- Lumber exports recovered in second quarter 2011
- Structural panels production declined again in Q2
Wood products
Wood-based panels
- Latvian plywood exports still higher than this time in 2010
- Demand for radiata pine plywood bounces back slightly after summer holidays end
- FFIF: Finnish plywood output grew again
- North American OSB manufacturers enjoy significant increase in exports
- North American composite panels producers‘ capacity utilisation rates stay low
- Slowdown in deliveries continued in second quarter
- GreCon wood-based panels seminar in Hanover
- Demand for MDF/HDF has undergone slight post-holiday revival since mid-August
- IHD Dresden holding ninth wood-based panels colloquium
- Summer reductions push OSB prices below last year‘s level again
- Slump in German particleboard exports persists
Furniture
- Demand for bathroom furniture remained brisk in July/August
- Fittings manufacturers anticipate possible renewed downturn in export markets
- VdDK members‘ order value up 5% in first half-year 2011
- Kitchen furniture industry sales 6% up on last year until June
Building products
Construction
- Housing construction again shows satisfactory trend
- Japan: Residential building increases by 5.8 % in June
Trade
Companies
- Lammhults: Office furniture segment improves turnover
- Slovenian furniture producer Javor Pohištvo bankrupt
- Javor Group: Another subsidiary files for bankruptcy
- Alno granted initial loan of €3m by Müller‘s Comco
- Forte enjoys strong growth in Q1 revenues and profits
- Eggerath: Business operations continue with work force of 60
- Kinnarps Deutschland bundles production in Worms
- Looser: Results forecast for 2011 corrected downwards
- Klostermann Küchen still up and running for time being
- Lowe’s: Turnover and result stabilising again
- Home Depot recovers again in the second quarter
- BlueLinx: Downward trend continues in Q2
- Temple-Inland: Timber business continues to operate at a loss
- IP: Take-over offer now extended until September
- Metsäliitto: Paper activities impose a strain on result
- Start-up in Braviken imposes strain on Holmen result
- Kurekss new sawing line starts up in fourth quarter
- Södra: Fire causes stop in production at Mönsterås
- Lafarge divests itself of gypsum operations in Asia
- Delignit: Results back in the black in first half of 2011
- Rougier books slowdown in revenue growth
- Pfleiderer Grajewo improves result again
- Gascogne records increased turnover in the first half year
- Uzin Utz shows further growth in turnover and result
- Roseburg to close two plants in South Carolina
- Resopal improves turnover by 17% in first six months
- Raute back in the black in the second quarter