BERLIN: German exports of rough-sawn softwood lumber to countries outside Europe decreased by 16% in the third quarter of 2015 vis à vis the comparative quarter last year to 309,734m³. This volume as a proportion of total exports therefore declined by three percentage points to 23%.
According to the Federal Statistical Office exports to China (-77%), Japan (-39%) and South Korea (-32%) declined most significantly.
Exports within Europe, at 996,433m³, were 2% below the previous year’s figure; on account of the below-average decrease, their proportion of exports as a whole increased by three percentage points to 77%. Decreased deliveries to, for example, Austria and Great Britain (-10% respectively) as well as to Italy (-18%) could only be partially compensated by increased exports to France (+9%), the Netherlands (+5%) and Belgium (+18%). Total exports, at 1.329m m³, were 6% below the figure recorded last year.
Accumulated over the first nine months, exports of softwood lumber remained 8% below the previous year’s figure at 3.941m m³. Exports within Europe decreased by 4% to 2.928m m³. Due to the below-average decline, this figure increased by three percentage points to 74% as a proportion of exports overall. Deliveries to non-EU countries decreased by 17% to 1.012m m³ and by three percentage points to an overall proportion of 26%.
