Austrian timber prices weaken due to oversupply and weak lumber demand

The Austrian timber market is facing growing pressure after snow and wind damage earlier this year added large volumes of salvage timber to an already weak market environment. Following snow breakage in February and windthrow events in March, many forest owners in Styria are struggling to sell harvested timber as sawmills operate with high inventories and limited intake capacity. Around 4.5 million m³ of timber are harvested annually in Styria, with roughly 80% processed domestically, but current market conditions have sharply reduced buying activity. According to the latest Holzmarktbericht published by LK Österreich, demand for softwood sawlogs ...