Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
Timber imports nudge upwards during Q3, though year-to-date volumes remain below 2024
New timber import figures from Timber Development UK covering Q3 2025, reveal an ongoing mixed picture for the sector, with year-to-date volumes still trailing 2024 but showing some signs of improvement as the year progressed.
The latest statistics confirm that total imports in the first nine months of 2025 reached 7.01 million m³ – some 2.1% below the 7.15 million m³ recorded in the same period of 2024. This gap has narrowed since the half-year point, however, when volumes were down by 2.9%.
TDUK head of technical and trade, Nick Boulton, said: “The latest timber import figures for Q1-3 od 2025 do show a slight improvement, albeit from a very low base, with several product categories showing signs of uplift in the third quarter in particular. This is most likely restocking after the raised construction activity we saw at mid-year. That said, the market remains difficult and overall volumes remain behind last year’s levels. The slight improvement is welcome, but it underlines just how sensitive demand continues to be across the sector. We will need to see sustained stability in 2026 before confidence can fully return to the market.”
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