Forest Products Trade Shows Tentative Recovery in 2024
Wood, Paper Trade Regains Ground After Sharp 2023 Decline
Rome: Global trade in forest products began clawing its way back in 2024 after one of its sharpest downturns in recent years, with new data showing a tentative recovery in production and exports following a steep contraction in 2023, according to Global forest products facts and figures 2024, released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on 24 December 2025.
The FAO statistical overview indicates that international trade in wood and paper products regained momentum across most major product groups, marking a cautious turnaround after an overall 14 per cent collapse in global trade in 2023.
Trade rebounds, but recovery remains modest
Global exports of wood and paper products increased by $7 billion, or 1.4 per cent, to reach $486 billion in 2024. While the growth rate remains modest, FAO notes that export values still exceed all levels recorded prior to 2021, underlining the structural importance of forest-based industries in the global economy.
Trade in non-wood forest products—which include items such as resins, gums, medicinal plants, nuts and fibres—also expanded, reaching $25 billion, reflecting the sector’s widening economic footprint beyond traditional timber and paper.
“Forests support millions of livelihoods worldwide, and the number is set to rise as forests offer more economic opportunities in a growing range of industries, including sustainable wood production,” said FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu, highlighting the sector’s social and economic relevance alongside its environmental role.
Production picks up across most wood-based categories
The tentative trade recovery in 2024 was underpinned by rising production in nearly all major forest product categories. FAO data show production increases ranging from 2 per cent for industrial roundwood, wood pellets and wood pulp, to 4–5 per cent growth for wood-based panels, paper and paperboard.
This broad-based improvement suggests that demand conditions began to normalise in several regions after the turbulence caused by weakening construction activity, high interest rates and inventory corrections in 2023.
Industrial roundwood: higher harvests, softer trade
Global industrial roundwood removals—the volume of wood harvested for uses other than energy—rose by 2 per cent to 1.96 billion cubic metres in 2024. However, international trade in industrial roundwood edged down by 1 per cent, to 96 million cubic metres, indicating that much of the additional production was absorbed domestically rather than exported.
Sawnwood: stable globally, divergent regionally
Global sawnwood production remained broadly flat in 2024, but regional trends diverged sharply. Output declined by 2 per cent in North America, reflecting subdued construction demand, while production remained stable in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. In contrast, output increased by 2 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean, pointing to strengthening regional markets.
International trade in sawnwood showed no overall change from 2023 levels, reinforcing the picture of a sector stabilising rather than accelerating.
Wood-based panels: second year of growth
Wood-based panels—a category that includes plywood, particleboard and fibreboard—continued their recovery for a second consecutive year. Global production expanded by 5 per cent, reaching 393 million cubic metres in 2024, with increases recorded in all five FAO regions.
Trade in wood-based panels grew even faster, rising 6 per cent to 90 million cubic metres, signalling renewed demand from furniture manufacturing and construction-linked industries.
Wood pulp and recovered paper hit new highs
The wood pulp sector recorded stronger gains, with global production rising 3 per cent to 189 million tonnes. International trade expanded by 2 per cent, reaching an all-time high of 73 million tonnes.
Much of the additional supply originated from China and South America, particularly Brazil, Chile and Uruguay, underlining the region’s growing competitiveness and large-scale investments in modern pulp capacity.
At the same time, global consumption of recovered paper edged up by 1 per cent to 243 million tonnes, reflecting both environmental policies and cost considerations encouraging greater recycling.
Wood pellets: bioenergy demand reshapes markets
Wood pellets—a fast-growing product category driven largely by renewable energy policies—returned to growth in 2024 after a slight dip the previous year. Global production rose to 48 million tonnes, matching the 2022 level.
Nearly two-thirds of global output (31 million tonnes) entered international trade, underlining the highly globalised nature of the pellet market. Europe and North America remained the dominant producing regions, accounting for 47 per cent and 28 per cent of global output, respectively.
However, the Asia-Pacific region continued to expand its role, increasing its share of global production from 14 per cent in 2020 to 22 per cent in 2024. On the consumption side, Europe accounted for 70 per cent of global demand, while the Asia-Pacific region absorbed 28 per cent, driven by bioenergy targets in Europe, the Republic of Korea and Japan.
Outlook: stabilisation, not a boom
FAO cautions that while 2024 marked a turning point, the recovery remains gradual and uneven across regions and product groups. The sector’s performance continues to be shaped by slowing and uneven construction activity in major economies, tighter financial conditions, shifting energy and climate policies, sustainability regulations, and evolving trade patterns. For many producers in the Global South, rising pulp output and growing participation in wood pellet and panel markets signal new export opportunities, but also expose them to volatility linked to bioenergy demand in Europe and East Asia, environmental compliance costs, and infrastructure constraints.
Still, the data suggest that the worst of the post-pandemic and post-inflationary correction may be over, with forest products once again asserting their role as a resilient pillar of the global bioeconomy.
Why this matters?
For India and the wider Asia-Pacific, the tentative recovery in global forest products trade intersects directly with housing demand, infrastructure expansion and energy-transition policies. The region’s rising share in wood pellet production reflects growing participation in bioenergy supply chains driven by climate targets in East Asia, even as Europe remains the dominant consumer. For Indian manufacturers, pulp producers and downstream industries such as packaging and construction materials, stabilising global markets offer export opportunities but also expose firms to volatility linked to climate regulations, sustainability standards and shifting energy policies abroad. How governments balance domestic resource use, environmental safeguards and integration into global bio-based value chains will shape jobs, investment and emissions outcomes across the region in the coming years.
– global bihari bureau
