Wood prices in Finland remained elevated throughout September, despite a slight decrease in standing sales prices. According to a report from the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), delivery sales, particularly for pulpwood, continued to command high prices. The overall volume of roundwood trade in September also exceeded typical levels, driven by increased demand and robust market activity.
The volume of roundwood trade in September was notably high, surpassing the average for the previous five years by 16%. Compared to last year, trade volumes were more than 50% higher. From January to September, cumulative trade volumes were up 11% from the same period in 2023, and almost 20% higher than the average of the past five years. Logs saw particularly strong demand, with trade volumes exceeding the five-year average by 20%, while pulpwood trade volumes rose by 11%.
In August 2024, Finland's pulpwood imports surged 79% year-on-year, while sawlog imports jumped 71%, according to Lesprom Analytics.
In terms of prices, standing sales experienced a slight decline in September. Softwood log prices dropped by just under 1% compared to August, although spruce logs remained steady at Euro 82 per cubic metre and pine logs held at Euro 79. Despite this minor decline, log prices were still around 10% higher than the average for last year in real terms. Birch log prices saw a larger drop of 2%, settling at Euro 65 per cubic metre.
Pulpwood prices in standing sales followed a similar downward trend, with prices falling by 2-3%. Spruce pulpwood prices dipped to below Euro 34 per cubic metre, while birch and pine pulpwood prices hovered around Euro 32. Despite the decrease, pulpwood prices in standing sales were still 23-25% higher than last year's average.
In contrast to the slight declines in standing sales, delivery sales prices for pulpwood continued to rise, reaching unprecedented levels. The average price of spruce pulpwood in delivery sales climbed to Euro 53 per cubic metre, birch to Euro 52, and pine to Euro 51. These prices represented an 11-13% increase from last year. In fact, delivery prices for spruce and birch pulpwood were the highest ever recorded since the monthly statistics began in 1995, while pine prices had only been higher once, in July 2024.
