Lumber production decreased by around 7%, from 256.3 million bft (411,000 m³ of 2-by-4 equivalents) in the first half of 2023 to 238.4 million bft (383,000 m³ of 2-by-4 equivalents) in the same period of this year. This is due to planned maintenance shutdowns and generally weak demand.
Lumber sales volumes were down by approximately 13% in the first half-year, totaling only 238.0 million bft (382,000 m³ of 2-by-4 equivalents). In the same period of 2023, 273.7 million bft (439,000 m³ of 2-by-4 equivalents) had been sold.
The average sales realizations with lumber increased by 6% to US-$461/1,000 bft in the first half of 2024, from US-$436/1,000 bft in the same period of 2023. This increase is said to be the result of a slight recovery in US demand. In Europe, the average sales realizations remained stable compared to last year. The US market accounted for around 49% of lumber sales in the first six months and about 41% of the lumber sales volumes. The majority of the remaining sales were generated in Europe.
As a whole, Mercer International’s Solid Wood segment recorded an operating loss of around US-$57.4 million (compared to US-$49.6 million in H1 2023), which is primarily due to the non-cash goodwill impairment of $34.3 million. This was partially offset by lower log prices and energy costs, higher mass timber sales volumes and a slight increase in lumber sales revenue.
