China feeds the construction boom with German wood

In Germany, which is actually densely forested, wood is becoming more and more expensive. The construction industry and craftsmen are complaining about the sharp rise in prices for construction timber, while at the same time the export of raw logs and processed sawn timber is increasing strongly. Last year, Germany exported the record amount of 12.7 million cubic meters of raw wood, as reported by the Federal Statistical Office. Over half of it went to the People's Republic of China, where the construction boom picked up again after the Corona crisis had been overcome. There is also high demand in the USA because traditional supplies from Canada are stalling after fires and Trump punitive tariffs. "The wood from our forests is being sold globally instead of being used regionally," warns WWF forest expert Susanne Winter. First politicians like Thuringia's Minister of Economic Affairs Wolfgang Tiefensee bring temporary EU export restrictions for wood and other raw materials into discussion in order to protect the domestic economy. The drastic price increases presented many handicraft businesses with enormous problems, explains also handicraft president Hans Peter Wollseifer, who also advocates export restrictions, but which do not meet with much approval in the federal government. Actually, there should be enough wood there, because in recent years drought, storms and pests like the bark beetle have torn large gaps in German forests. Last year, more trees were felled than ever since German reunification, around 80.4 million cubic meters of wood. Bad for the forest owners: the so-called damaged wood made up far more than half, as the Federal Statistical Office further reported. There is much less money at dealers for "beetle wood", because the material can only be used in construction where it cannot be seen.