Timber imports to the UK in 2025

UK timber imports in 2025: ten-year low amid structural shifts and rising prices

    According to the annual report of Timber Development UK (TDUK), the volume of imports of wood and wood boards to the UK in 2025 decreased to the lowest level in the last decade. Total imports amounted to 9.1 million m3, which is 2.2% lower than in 2024. However, these figures conceal a complex picture of multidirectional trends: a decline in some segments is accompanied by steady growth in others, and price dynamics and structural changes in supply chains indicate a profound transformation of the British market.

Overall picture: ten-year low amid stagnation in construction

    Demand for wood products in the UK has remained subdued over the past four years. The 2025 data confirms the continuation of this trend: annual import volumes were the lowest in about a decade.

    Imports in the fourth quarter of 2025 were also lower than in the same period of 2024, although they exceeded the levels of the fourth quarters of 2022 and 2023. This gives grounds for cautious optimism: the market may be bottoming out and preparing for a recovery.

Coniferous species: falling volumes with rising prices

    Coniferous wood retains a dominant position in the structure of British imports, accounting for about 61% of the total volume. In 2025, softwood imports reached 5.55 million m3, which is 4% less than 5.78 million m3 in 2024.

Geography of supplies:

• - Decrease: Sweden, Germany, Ireland reduced shipments to the British market.
• - Growth: Latvia and Finland increased supplies, partially offsetting the drop from other exporters.
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Key trend: price dynamics
    Despite the drop in physical volumes, the cost of softwood imports increased by 8% due to higher prices. The average price of imported softwood jumped to 89 pounds per m3 in 2025, compared with 56 pounds per m3 in 2024. This is an unprecedented leap, reflecting both global trends in the cost of raw materials and structural changes in the product range.

Structural shift: from white wood to sequoia
    Important changes have taken place in the structure of coniferous imports: the cost of sequoias has increased, while the cost of white wood has decreased. TDUK announced that starting in 2026, it will include the proportion of redwoods in its structural price index to reflect these changes. For market participants, this is a signal of the need to review procurement strategies in response to changing demand.

Hardwoods: stability against the background of multidirectional dynamics

    Hardwood imports remained broadly stable, amounting to 431,000 m3 in 2025, a decrease of just 1.7% from 438,000 m3 in 2024.

Multidirectional dynamics was observed within the segment:

• - Tropical timber: imports decreased by 9.7%.
• - Temperate wood: imports decreased by 3.9%.
• - Mixed breeds: imports increased by 10%, reaching 115,000 m3.
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Geography of hardwood supplies:

• - Growth: The USA, Latvia and France have increased their volumes.
• - Recession: Estonia, Romania and the Republic of Congo have reduced supplies.
• - A key supplier of tropical timber: Cameroon has retained its leadership.
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    The price dynamics in the hardwood segment was moderate: the average annual import price increased slightly, by 0.4%, to 68 euros per m3. At the same time, prices for tropical wood increased by 1.6%, for the main types of temperate wood – by 3.5%, and the average price of mixed wood decreased by 2.3%.

Plywood and slab materials: areas of steady growth

    Against the background of the general downturn, several product categories showed impressive growth, indicating continued demand in certain market segments.

Engineered Wood: Explosive growth

    The segment of deep wood processing products (engineered wood) has demonstrated impressive dynamics:

    The exception was glued timber (CLT), imports of which decreased by 23.6% compared to 2024. This may be due to the completion of major projects or temporary logistical difficulties.

Expert's comment: risks and responsibilities

"Although the total volume of timber imports decreased slightly in 2025, the figures show that the situation in the sector is mixed. Most of the reduction in total volume was due to lower imports of softwood and MDF, while a number of other product categories, such as chipboard and a number of wood products, showed strong growth during the year. This highlights the continued demand in certain market segments, even though overall construction activity remains subdued.
    The figures also confirm that imports of hardwood plywood have increased significantly, but additional work may be required to find out the reasons for this. Perhaps this change is partly the result of the anti-dumping legislation adopted by the EU last year regarding hardwood plywood from China. It is also possible that part of this increase may be related to conflict wood in the form of birch plywood entering the market from Russia through third countries.
    As always, we urge our members and the industry as a whole to exercise caution and use TDUK resources dedicated to compliance verification and responsible procurement policies to ensure that the wood they purchase complies with all relevant EU and UK regulations." — Nick Bolton, Head of Technical and Trade Policy at Timber Development UK

    This statement highlights the growing importance of compliance risks in the international timber trade. Market participants need to carefully check the origin of products, especially in light of sanctions restrictions and EU requirements to combat illegal harvesting.

Forecast for 2026: cautious optimism

    Although 2025 was the lowest import volume in many years, statistics indicate that the market may be approaching a turning point. TDUK's preliminary forecasts indicate a potential increase in softwood imports of about 3.7% in 2026, which will return to the level of about 5.8 million m3.

    The expected recovery in confidence in the UK housing and construction sectors is the basis for optimism. Economic stabilization, lower inflation and a possible easing of monetary policy may stimulate investment in construction and, consequently, demand for wood materials.

Key import indicators for 2025:

Conclusions for the global market

1.     - The British market is undergoing a structural transformation: a drop in demand for traditional softwood lumber is combined with an increase in consumption of engineered wood and slab materials.
2.     - Price pressure remains: even with a drop in physical volumes, the cost of imports is rising, which indicates a long-term trend in wood prices.
3.     - Compliance is becoming a critical factor: the risk of "conflict wood" entering the supply chain requires importers to pay increased attention to the origin of products.
4.     - Supplier diversification continues: the growing share of Latvia, Finland, Brazil and China in certain segments indicates the restructuring of global logistics routes.
5.     - 2026 may be a turning point: if TDUK's forecasts come true, the market will begin to recover from years of decline, which will create opportunities for exporters who are ready to meet new requirements for product quality and origin.

Tags: #UK #import_wood #TDUK #coniferous forests #plywood #chipboard #construction sector #supply chain #anti-dumping #responsible purchases