16.05.2012
Roundwood/Sawnwood
- European demand for African lumber still well below last year’s level in April and early May
- European shippers able to push through more price increases for softwood lumber in Japan
- EU suspends sanctions against Burma/Myanmar
- North America: Positive start to year for softwood lumber producers
- Chilean timber industry is calling for better infrastructure
- Chile exports 47% more softwood lumber in Q1
- Poland: Softwood roundwood imports soared 63% in 2011
- Polish sawmills keep cutting throttled back
- Poland: Softwood sawlog prices stable at high level
- Finnish wood exports holding firm at a high level
- Another minor increase in log prices in Finland by May
- Skogsindustrierna confirms estimates of windblow
- Upswing in French hardwood sawmills’ business activity came to a halt in April
- Only minor damage caused by foehn storm in Switzerland
- Holzindustrie Schweiz quits fund for promoting wood sales
- Felling volume raised by 4.8% in Austria in 2011
- Improvement in availability of pulpwood in Austria recently
- Only very slow growth in softwood lumber prices
Wood products
- Industrial packaging companies still registering last year’s brisk pace of business in early 2012
- 2011 sees record turnover in wood-packaging industry
- Higher replacement costs for DIY panels virtually impossible to pass on so far
- German pellet production reaches record level
- Higher pellet-heating system installation figures in Austria
Wood-based panels
- Strong fluctuations in demand for Russian birch plywood in Central Europe
- Home Improvement Forum in Paris expects 500 participants
- Lead times for maritime pine plywood lengthen again amid strong demand
- North America: Structural panels production continues to improve
- Turkey: Four more plants to start up by middle of 2012
- Italian WBP makers still idling machines
- Brazilian panels production steady at last year’s level
Surfaces
Furniture
Events
- 2012 Trä & Teknik already 93% booked
- 37th Holzhandelstag: GD Holz plans to elect new chairman in Munich
- Building and energy fair expecting over 430 exhibitors
- Ironmongery fair 2012: Slight declines again
Companies
- Purchasing cooperations have decided to collaborate
- Praktiker postpones its annual general meeting
- Raw material costs impose a strain on result of Uzin Utz
- Alno has to secure its financing arrangements very soon
- Steelcase to construct an assembly plant in India
- Rougier invests some €12m in African production sites
- Södra again cuts softwood-lumber production
- Setra extends sorting line at Skinnskatteberg site
- Fill Maschinenbau invests €25m in Gurten headquarters
- Interprint installs EBC system in printing press
- Munksjö decor-printing sector to trade again as E2P
- Kastamonu renames subsidiaries in south-eastern Europe
- Unilin intends to expand activities in France further
- Schweighofer boosts pellet and power-plant capacity
- IBV granted approval for large sawmill in France
- Hidden Peak acquires plastic profile producer Profine
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