In the first quarter, Germany exported considerably more softwood logs than in the same period of 2019: 1.73 million m³ correspond to a 38% increase. This is according to data published by Destatis. Exports to China more than doubled. The volume rose by 129% to a total of nearly 818,000 m³ – despite the outbreak of COVID-19 in China at the beginning of the year. Austria now ranks second among the main buyers of German softwood logs. Germany shipped 7% less to its neighboring country compared to 2019.
Despite being on a lower level in terms of quantities, shipments to South Korea (53,000 m³; +160%), Luxembourg (41,000 m³, +236%) and the Netherlands (40,000 m³; +88%) saw a marked increase compared to the first three months of 2019.
In the section Foreign trade of our Datacube, you can find detailed data on past years.
Germany softwood log exports January to March 2020
| Country | 2020 | 2019 | Change in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 817,552 | 357,115 | 128.9 |
| Austria | 340,865 | 366,053 | -6.9 |
| Belgium | 219,682 | 219,210 | 0.2 |
| South Korea | 53,127 | 20,429 | 160.1 |
| Czech Republic | 51,617 | 50,832 | 1.5 |
| Luxembourg | 41,137 | 12,230 | 236.4 |
| Netherlands | 39,638 | 21,044 | 88.4 |
| Sweden | 34,238 | 27,074 | 26.5 |
| Poland | 25,205 | 28,705 | -12.2 |
| Denmark | 24,834 | 44,157 | -43.8 |
| Other countries | 83,748 | 110,903 | -24.5 |
| Total | 1,731,643 | 1,257,752 | 37.7 |
