7
UNECE/FAO Forest Products Annual Market Review, 2014-2015
1-13%, depending on specification, in the first seven months of 2014. Prices for European sawn beech also increased in 2014 after stagnating for most of 2013. Prices for kiln-dried US hardwood increased sharply between October 2013 and June 2014, triggered by strong demand, particularly in Asia and domestically and intensifying due to weather-related shortages in the 2013-2014 winter.
1.5.4
Wood-based panels
Economic growth continued in North America in 2014, driven largely by the US, but Europe and the CIS were stagnant. There was moderately strong growth in the consumption of woodbased panels in both North America (+5.0%) and Europe (+4.7%) in 2014, but consumption declined by 4.4% in the CIS. Plywood consumption increased by just 1.2% across the UNECE region, although it grew by an impressive 3.9% in the EU. Particle board consumption grew by 2.1% across the region: it was up by 8.5% in North America and down by 8.3% in the CIS. The growth in the consumption of OSB (7.6% overall) was strong in all three subregions. The consumption of fibreboard increased in 2014 in North America (by 4.2%) and Europe (by 6.6%) but declined in the CIS (by 1.0%). Wood-based panel production increased by 3.5% in the UNECE region in 2014 and is projected to grow by another 1.3% in 2015. Production volumes increased for all panel types; the increases were low for plywood (1.0%) and particle board (1.8%) but relatively high for OSB (5.4%) and medium-density fibreboard (MDF) (3.4%). The increase in production volume for plywood, particle board and MDF is expected to be in the range of 1.01.3% in 2015. In contrast, the rapidly emerging OSB industry in the Russian Federation is expected to propel growth in OSB production in the UNECE region by 10.1% in 2015. Both the US and the CIS had trade deficits in wood panels in 2014, while Europe showed a slight trade surplus (although the surplus was much lower than in 2013). The trade deficit in wood-based panels increased by 62% in North America in 2014, but it declined by 39.1% in the CIS. UNECE projections suggest that all three subregions will report trade deficits in 2015.
1.5.5
Despite significant capacity closures in several graphic paper grades in Europe, Japan and North America in 2014, there is still excess production capacity if measured against falling or static demand; as a result, prices have deteriorated. Apparent consumption in Europe rose in 2014, aided by stronger economic activity, but fell in North America due to the ongoing negative impacts of the growth of electronic media, which has largely affected demand for graphic papers. Graphic paper and chemical woodpulp output fell in both Europe and North America. In the CIS, production and apparent consumption both increased due to ongoing investment in capacity. Global demand for pulp and paperboard grew in 2014, but graphic paper consumption fell. Electronic communication continued to play a major role in the evolution of the pulp and paper segments, with paperboard benefiting from increased online shopping. In the pulp sector, the expansion of bleached hardwood kraft capacity in South America was by far the most important factor influencing the market in 2014 and the first half of 2015. In the paper sector, the trend continues of converting to the production of paperboard and packaging grades. Prices in the pulp sector generally corrected in 2014. Prices for hardwood kraft grades rebounded, reflecting a significant price advantage compared with higher-priced softwood-based pulps. By mid-2015, pulp prices appeared to have stagnated due to low pricing for end-use products – particularly graphic grades – and unfavourable currency plays against the rising US dollar. Weaker currencies have, however, provided export opportunities and improved margins for pulp and paper producers.
1.5.6
Wood energy
Wood energy markets are developing strongly, with wood remaining the single most important source of renewable energy in the UNECE region. The contribution of wood to renewable energy portfolios is decreasing, however, because wind and solar energy are developing faster. The forest-based industry is the largest consumer of wood energy (43.9%), followed by the residential (35.8%) and power-
Paper, paperboard and woodpulp
The pulp, paper and paperboard market was once again in flux in 2014 as large concentrations of graphic paper capacity continued to be rationalized in Europe and North America. This development has persisted for well over a decade. South American expansions of chemical market pulp capacity continued to affect UNECE producers, with tonnage easily absorbed by the tissue and packaging segments and by consumers wanting to reduce their use of higher-cost softwood kraft grades. Southeast Asia remained the favoured target market, despite a marked slowdown in the level of investment in new paper and paperboard installations to serve rapidly growing economies. The ramifications of these and other changes are being felt globally.
Source: UNECE/FAO, 2015.