Sawmill Profits in Finland Dipped to Historic Lows

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The latest edition of Wood Resources Quarterly (WRQ) Report states that sawmills in Finland recorded lowest profits in their history during the third quarter of 2019. The lower lumber prices in the country have resulted in rapid fall in gross margins for Finnish lumber producers.

According to WRQ, resilient wood raw-material costs and falling lumber prices have contributed to lower margins for sawmilling sectors in Finland and Sweden. Incidentally, sawlog prices in both the countries have been on a continuous declining trend, mainly on account of reduced demand from the region’s sawmills.

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Meantime, sawmills in western U.S. and western Canada recorded slight improvement in gross margins in Q3, over the prior quarter. However, they were still below the five-year averages for the regions. Austrian sawmills reported increased profitability during 2019, primarily on account of reduced sawlog costs. Also, sawmill sector in Eastern Russia saw profitability improvement in Q3 2019.