Experts on the prospects of the chipboard market
The wood-based panel market took a long time to restore its position, recovered from the fall and is now striving for record values. Thus, according to the results of the first half of 2024, the chipboard market grew by 19.6%, the fiberboard market by 15.9%. At the same time, the overall woodworking market during the same time increased by 6%, and at the end of 2023 showed a decline of 4.5% year on year.
Experts from the Forest Complex portal made a large review of the chipboard market, we have collected its key points in our digest.
- Experts attribute the positive dynamics primarily to the active growth in the production of Russian furniture, for which chipboard and laminated chipboard are the main material in production. Thus, in the first quarter of 2024, compared to the same period last year, the production volume of the furniture industry increased by 20% in volume and by 24.2% in value terms.
- The trend towards the expansion of individual housing construction, in particular frame house construction, as well as the gradual restoration of timber harvesting volumes, also contribute to the growth trend.
- Export markets for wood-based panel manufacturers were less affected by the tightening of sanctions, since the main supplies go to the CIS countries and Central Asia. According to the forecasts of the experts surveyed, the production of chipboards, including OSB (oriented strand boards), will grow by 8% year-on-year in 2024 (up to 13.1 million m3), and fiberboard, including MDF (medium density fibreboard), - by 5% (up to 736 million m2).
- Along with the growing demand, the cost of wood-based panels on the domestic market is also increasing. Experts attribute the rise in prices for wood panels and other materials for suburban construction to higher prices for logistics, lengthening supply chains for equipment and spare parts for logging, as well as rising wages in production.
Olga Kalyuzhnaya, President of the Russian Timber Association: “Among all areas of wood processing, the production of wood-based panels in Russia was the least affected by the introduction of sanctions. This is due to the fact that chipboard production is focused primarily on the domestic market, where the main consumers are furniture factories and the construction industry. The export direction for chipboard is traditionally represented by the markets of the CIS countries - Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Belarus. At the end of 2023, the chipboard market grew by 12% year-on-year, reaching a record 11.6 million m3. The positive trend continues this year and is likely to show new record numbers.”.
