In the first quarter of 2025, the 15 biggest producing countries sold a total of 25.23 million m³ of softwood lumber to the 15 largest importing countries. Year on year, this corresponds to a slight decrease of 2% or around 500,000 m³. In the first quarter of 2024, 25.7 million m³ were traded globally. In the same period of 2023, trade totaled 26.62 million m³ and a year before, it amounted to 29.19 million m³.
Canada is by far the largest exporter of softwood lumber. In the first quarter, 7.44 million m³ were sold on foreign markets. Compared to the same period in 2024, this corresponds to a decrease of 8%, or 681,000 m³. Russia, which ranks second, exported a total of 4 million m³, i.e. nearly the same volume as in the first quarter of 2024 (-1%). Sweden completes the podium with an export volume of 3.63 million m³ and a year-on-year increase of 6%, or 216,000 m³.
Germany (2 million m³; -15%), Latvia (662,000 m³; -21%), and the US (652,000 m³; -15%) recorded substantial decreases in their respective softwood lumber exports in the first three months. By contrast, significant growth rates were achieved by Finland (2.06 million m³; +29%), Austria (1.61 million m³; +16%), and Brazil (747,000 m³; +13%). As a result, Germany lost its fourth place in the ranking of the largest softwood lumber exporters from the first quarter of 2024 to Finland, and Brazil swapped places with the US this year.
| Table of softwood lumber trade flows from the 15 biggest exporting countries to the 15 biggest importing countries as well as to the MENA region (volumes in 1,000 m³). National statistics on lumber exports were used as sources (as of June 2025). | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Vertical: 15 biggest exporting countries | Horizontal: 15 biggest importing countries | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Countries | Total1–3 2025 | Diff. 1–3 2024/2025 | Diff. in % | USA | China | Great Britain | Italy | Japan | Germany | Egypt | Netherlands | Uzbekistan | France | Mexico | Saudi Arabia | Österreich | Estland | Dänemark | Sonstige Länder | MENA |
| Canada | 7,442 | –681 | –8 | 6,728 | 239 | 5 | 1 | 206 | 33 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 6 | 0.4 | 0.05 | 0.4 | 194 | 20 |
| Russia | 4,000 | –60 | –1 | 0 | 2,505 | 0 | 0 | 117 | 0 | 140 | 0 | 422 | 0 | n/s | n/s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 816 | 450 |
| Sweden | 3,631 | 216 | 6 | 355 | 87 | 703 | 14 | 208 | 203 | 264 | 305 | 0 | 106 | 0.04 | 75 | 11 | 52 | 239 | 1,008 | 630 |
| Finland | 2,059 | 457 | 29 | 17 | 79 | 176 | 56 | 146 | 126 | 233 | 85 | 0 | 141 | 0 | 97 | 51 | 197 | 40 | 614 | 555 |
| Germany | 2,001 | –343 | –15 | 551 | 32 | 73 | 134 | 31 | – | 4 | 177 | 0 | 173 | 2 | 20 | 174 | 0.4 | 12 | 620 | 75 |
| Austria | 1,609 | 217 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 732 | 47 | 263 | 1 | 4 | 0.05 | 25 | 0 | 66 | – | 1 | 0.2 | 467 | 251 |
| Brazil | 747 | 89 | 13 | 254 | 75 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0.1 | 0 | 1 | 123 | 86 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 207 | 142 |
| Latvia | 662 | –174 | –21 | 56 | 4 | 248 | 4 | 16 | 18 | 33 | 37 | 0 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 51 | 5 | 158 | 48 |
| USA | 652 | –118 | –15 | – | 15 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 0.4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 247 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 363 | 5 |
| Chile | 503 | –106 | –17 | 46 | 57 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 74 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 275 | 51 |
| Belarus | 478 | –36 | –7 | 0 | 218 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/s | 0 | 100 | 0 | n/s | n/s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 160 | n/s |
| Czech Republic | 457 | 0 | –0.1 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 40 | 11 | 150 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 97 | 0.01 | 0.1 | 129 | 3 |
| Ukraine | 350 | –31 | –8 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 40 | 1 | 27 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.02 | 0.4 | 1 | 1 | 271 | 8 |
| New Zealand | 341 | 88 | 35 | 64 | 47 | 0.2 | 0.04 | 8 | 0.1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 | 201 | 12 |
| Romania | 298 | –12 | –4 | 23 | 8 | 2 | 17 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0.3 | 0 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 42 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 170 | 149 |
| Total | 25,228 | –494 | –2 | 8,106 | 3,372 | 1,215 | 1,040 | 843 | 823 | 680 | 638 | 522 | 485 | 468 | 435 | 349 | 302 | 297 | 5,653 | 2,398 |
