Documentation of statistics volumes and prices in industrial roundwood trade

Data description

The statistics give the volumes and prices of roundwood bought from non-industrial, private forests by the forest industries for the production of forestry products. Statistics are published monthly and yearly.

Classification system

Statistics on standing sales and delivery sales are recorded separately. Standing sales are further divided into regeneration felling, thinning and first thinning.

The timber assortments used for recording statistics include pine, spruce, and birch logs; pine, spruce and birch pulpwood; and pine and spruce small-diameter logs. The volumes of special timber assortments are also published.

The areas used the monthly statistics are the price regions of wood comprised from regions. The total number of these price regions is eight, since the beginning of 2020. The most specific regional division of the annual statistics are the regions of Mainland Finland (18), used since 2016. The regional districts of the Finnish Forest Centre (13) were used for the regional division in the annual statistics until 2015. The current regional divisions are presented in a map, which can be found on the statistics homepage. The statistics do not include data from Ahvenanmaa.

Sector coverage

The statistics on the volumes and prices in industrial roundwood trade cover approximately 90% of the trade of private, non-industrial forests, and the information is not rounded up to correspond to the total non-industrial private wood trade in Finland. The statistics do not include energywood bought for the production of forest chips for heating and powerplants.

The given average prices are recorded based on unit prices recorded in wood trade agreements. The price data in the statistics does not include other potential fees and services of wood trade or later price revisions. Statistics on the prices of special timber assortments are not recorded, and their trade volumes are not given by the sales method.

Statistical concepts and definitions

Industrial roundwood is classified as logs or pulpwood based on diameter. Wood must also meet other diameter and quality requirements that have been agreed upon. 

Statistics are published for the following timber assortments: pine, spruce, and birch logs; pine, spruce, and birch pulpwood; and pine and spruce small-diameter logs. Pine pulpwood also includes spruce pulpwood bought under the names of spruce cellulose and rotten spruce, and pine and spruce pulpwood bough under the name of coniferous pulpwood in North Finland. Rotten spruce, unsuitable as a raw material for forestry products, is not included in the statistics. Small-diameter pine logs are pine bought for sawing and separately measured, usually with a top-diameter of under 15cm. The corresponding diameter-limit of small-diameter spruce logs is 16 centimetres. However, the diameter and quality requirements of small-diameter logs change from one buyer to another, and as a result small-diameter logs smaller than previously described diameter-limits may be included in the statistics.

The volumes of special timber assortments have been included in the wood trade statistics since 1999. The contents of this category have changed over the years. Since the beginning of 2011, the special timber assortments are as follows: special birch butt-logs, European aspen (logs and pulpwood combined), and other unclassified special timber. Small-diameter logs were classified as special timber assortment in 1999–2010, but they are recorded separately, and price data is published starting from 2011. In 1999–2000 pine pillars, special pine butt-logs, and spar blanks were recorded as special timber. Since 2001, these have been included in their corresponding main timber assortments. Pine pillars are recorded as pine logs, spar blanks are recorded as pine or spruce pulpwood, depending on the timber assortment. 

Statistics on wood priced by stem pricing method are not recorded separately. Wood priced by stem prices (or trade in which logs and pulpwood have the same price) is classified as special timber, the prices of which are not given. 

The statistics focus on the standing and delivery sales of enterprises buying industrial roundwood. Most of these sales comprise of wood from non-industrial private forests, owned by private persons. Wood from municipalities, parishes, and various groups bought with these sales methods is included in the statistics. Small volumes of wood bought from Metsähallitus in standing or delivery sales can still be included in the statistics if in the enterprise’s data system, it has not been recorded separately from wood from non-industrial private forests.

The buyer involved in the wood trade who pays the sales prices for the forest owner also makes a statistical declaration to the Natural Resources Institute Finland. The statistics are focused on the primary sales of wood or the authority to harvest wood. Secondary sales and trades between entrepreneurs or organisations are not included in the statistics.

Statistics on standing sales and delivery sales are recorded separately. Since the beginning of 2011 data on standing sales has also been recorded by felling type: regeneration felling, thinning, and first thinning.

In standing sales, the seller authorises the buyer to harvest wood from a predetermined area in their forest. The buyer is responsible for felling and transporting the wood to a location along a long-distance delivery route, and for the costs of these operations. The prices of timber assortments are determined as standing sales prices (stumpage prices).

In delivery sales the seller is responsible for felling and short-distance transporting of the wood to a storage location. Pricing is based on roadside prices, which includes the costs for felling and transportation. Delivery sales also include so-called cash sales, made for wood already delivered to a storage location by the seller.

Regeneration fellings aim at generating a new generation of trees. Forest’s readiness for regeneration is primarily determined by the thickness or age of trees in the forest. The severity of regeneration fellings varies from harvesting individual trees to clear-fellings. Seed and shelterwood positions of varying degrees exist between the extremes.

The goals of thinning are to improve the quality of farmed trees, make trees thicken quicker, and to gain income from harvesting. Forest stands are usually thinned twice or three times during their cycle, depending on for example location and tree species. Wood accumulating from the removal of standards is also given in thinnings.

First thinning is the first harvest of the forest producing sellable timber. First thinning is done at a dominant height of 12–15 metres in forests where the sapling stands have been maintained in time.

Other added costs and services related to wood trade, or price checks conducted later are not included in the statistics. Statistics on the prices of special timber assortments are not recorded, and their trade volumes are not given by the sales method.

Statistical unit     

The prices and volumes in the statistics on wood trade are based on agreements on wood trade made by the buyers and sellers. Data on wood trade is collected from the buyers. The Finnish Forest Industries provide the Natural Resources Institute Finland with data on the wood trade of their member companies. Since the January 2013 statistics, some member companies of The Finnish Sawmills Association are included in the statistics. In the beginning of 2016 forest management associations and more medium-sized forestry companies were added to the statistics.

Statistical population

The statistical population includes all enterprises and operators buying industrial roundwood from private forests. 

Unit of measure 

The volumes of wood trade are recorded in solid volumes, cubic metres over bark (m³). The prices are recorded as Euros per cubic meters over bark. 

The given average prices are averages weighted with volumes bought, recorded in wood trade agreements.  The prices are recorded without value added tax and given in euros with an accuracy of a cent. Other added costs and services related to wood trade, or price checks conducted later are not included in the statistics.

Unit prices are recorded in the statistical database at the fair prices valid each time. However, price changes are examined in the texts and graphs in real terms by eliminating the change in value using the cost-of-living index. Before February 2022, the wholesale price index was used in this calculation.

Reference period

Month, calendar year

Reference area

The reference area of the statistics is the whole of Finland, excluding Ahvenanmaa. Statistics are compiled for the whole of Finland, by region, and by price regions of wood.

Time coverage

Information is available per felling year since the 1950s. Statistics have been published yearly since 1983, and monthly since the October of 1985.

Frequency of disseminations

Monthly and yearly.

Base period

The statistics are not an index.

The statistics are compiled based on the Act on the Natural Resources Institute Finland (561/2014), the Act on Food and Natural Resource Statistics (562/2014), the Customs Act (1466/94), and the Statistics Act (280/2004).

More information: Statistics legislation

Confidentiality is a base principle of statistics and assures the confidential processing of data provided by informants, and the Natural Resources Institute Finland has undertaken to follow this principle.

More information: Privacy policy – Statistics

The disseminations of the Natural Resources Institute Finland are published online on weekdays at 9:00. Data is public after it has been published on the website.

Release calendar

Publication dates are confirmed in autumn together with the action plans. The release calendar of the following year is published for users in the end of the year. The release calendar contains data on the dates of future publications. The calendar also contains direct links to already published statistical publication.

Release calendar access

Statistical releases calendar | Natural Resources Institute Finland

Quality assurance

The Natural Resources Institute Finland follows the Code of Practice and the Quality Assurance Framework of European statistics when compiling statistics. The Code of Practice concern the independence and accountability of statistics authorities, and the quality of processes and published data. The principles are compatible with and supplement the Principles of Official Statistics, agreed upon by the United Nations Statistical Commission. The quality criteria of official statistics in Finland are also compatible with the Code of Practice of European statistics. The principles are also compatible with the European Foundation for Quality Management.

Quality assurance on the statistics on the volumes and prices in roundwood trade was conducted in 2019.

Quality assessment

The response material of the statistics is review and statistical values are compared to earlier data. 

Feedback is collected from the users of the statistics in a meeting regarding statistics reforms, and as written comments. Feedback is also received directly. We follow the received feedback and take it into consideration in developing the statistics.

User needs

With the help of the statistics, the participants in wood trade can follow the development of wood trade. The data is also used for, for example, research, forest sector economic outlooks and predictions, and the creation and tracking of the National Forest Strategy 2025 and regional forest programmes.

User satisfaction

Feedback is collected from the users of the statistics, especially when revising the statistics. Feedback is also received directly. 

A first survey on developing wood trade statistics was conducted in 2019, and this survey was discussed in the client group of The Natural Resources Institute Finland’s Forestry Statistics. In addition, we investigated the wishes of users for developing the statistics in the autumn of 2021 and beginning of 2022, when updating the work programme for the Natural Resources Institute Finland. We follow the received feedback and take it into consideration in developing the statistics.

Completeness 

The statistics comply with all EU regulations and cover all national needs for information.

Overall accuracy and reliability

The coverage of the statistics can be considered good, since the material of the monthly and annual statistics covers over 90% of roundwood trade of private, non-industrial forests in Finland. The coverage has been increased twice: in 2013 and in 2016. There is a jump in wood volumes in the time series in both of these years, as the statistics give the wood trade volumes of enterprises included in data collection as is.

Until the end of 2012 the statistics only included the wood trade of member companies of the Finnish Forest Industries. During this time the statistics covered approximately 87% of roundwood trade of private, non-industrial forests in Mainland Finland.

Sampling error

Data collection is not based on sampling; thus, sampling error has not been calculated. Wood trade of enterprises included in the statistics are recorded as they are, and the volumes of trade are not expanded to match the total volumes of industrial roundwood trade. The final volumes of wood in wood trade are recorded later in the Commercial Fellings statistics.

Non-sampling error

Measurement error

The recorded prices are based on unit prices entered into the wood trade agreements between buyers and sellers. Other added costs and services related to wood trade, or price checks conducted later are not included in the recorded average prices.

Timeliness

The Natural Resources Institute Finland publishes statistics on the volumes and prices in roundwood trade monthly and yearly. Preliminary monthly information on the prices of wood trade is published with a statistical delay of approximately three weeks. Data by calendar year is published during February following the statistical year. The information in the yearly statistics is final.

Comparability - geographical

Data between national regions included in the statistics is comparable, but area classifications have changed in the course of the history of the statistic. Until 1996 the regions consisted of the regions of forestry committees (19). Since 1996 the regional districts of the Finnish Forest Centre (14 in 2015) have been in use. Since 2016 information has been given by regions. Wood price regions, which comprise of regions of forest centres and regions, have also been used as regional classifications. Data by region is not comparable across these changes to regional divisions.

Comparability - over time

Monthly information on wood trade is preliminary. Final information on price and volume is published in the annual statistics. These include for example confidential monthly information, data which was not provided by the due date of providing data, and revised data. Unit prices of wood trade are comparable over time in fixed regions.

Statistics on the wood trade of private, non-industrial forests have been published yearly since 1983, and monthly since the October of 1985. Additionally, the Finnish Statistical Yearbook of Forestry published time series on price from the felling year 1949/50 to 1983.

Price regions, which are larger than the regions of forest centres, were taken into use in monthly statistics in July of 2006. There have been changes to the numbers and definitions of price regions. The most recent change took place in the beginning of 2020 as the number of price regions increased from seven to eight.

Special timber assortments were adopted to the monthly and annual statistics in the beginning of 1999. The contents of the Special timber assortments -category have changed over the years.

Coherence - cross domain

Statistics on wood trade are compiled for two stages of wood trade: sales and harvesting. When comparing the wood volumes in the statistics on wood trade and statistics on commercial fellings, the difference in coverage between the statistics should be taken into consideration. Statistics on the volumes and prices in roundwood trade cover approximately 90% of all wood trade, and data is not expanded to cover all wood trade. The felling statistics cover all commercial fellings of private forests.

Additionally, wood trade agreements under-estimated the volume of harvested wood by approximately 10% on average. There is a time delay between wood trade and harvesting, so wood volumes recorded in the statistics on wood trade does not directly correspond to the volume of wood harvested during the same year.

Coherence between sub annual and annual statistics

Monthly information is preliminary, and the yearly statistics are final. Differences between monthly and yearly statistics are small. The wood trade volumes in the annual statistics are usually slightly higher than the sum of the monthly statistics because the annual statistics contain data that was not submitted for the monthly statistics on time. Some of the reporting agents supply the Natural Resources Institute Finland with updated data for the statistical year, but for others the reported monthly data is used for compiling the annual statistics.

Coherence - internal

The data in the statistics is coherent. The statistics on roundwood trade published by the Natural Resources Institute Finland are the only regular survey on industrial roundwood trade volumes and unit prices in Finland.

The Finnish Forest Industries also tracks the prices in wood trade weekly. The used unit prices of wood are averages of the past four weeks and the wood trade volumes are volumes from the tracked week. This service is forwarded to clients through the Natural Resources Institute Finland’s statistical portal even though the Natural Resources Institute Finland does not compile it and is not responsible for its contents. 

The material for the annual statistics collected by the Natural Resources Institute Finland covered approximately 47 million cubic metres of wood trade in total in 2021. The material was approximately 11 million cubic metres, which was 30% more than the weekly monitoring of the Finnish Forest Industries.

Source data

Data for the member companies of the Finnish Forest Industries is based on their own data collection. Other data is collected by the Natural Resources Institute Finland.

Frequency of data collection

Monthly and yearly.

Data collection

The statistics are based on data on wood trade, provided by enterprises buying wood. Data for the member companies of the Finnish Forest Industries is received from the Finnish Forest Industries. Data on wood trade from other data providers is received directly. The Natural Resources Institute Finland combines the data and calculates standing and delivery sales prices weighted by wood volumes. Sampling is not used in data collection. Results are not expanded to account for all of the trade, and no coefficients or weights, by owner group or other, are used in compiling the results.

Data validation

The Natural Resources Institute Finland reviews the data before compilation. Data is compared to the respondent’s data from the previous month, and unit prices are compared to average unit prices of all respondents. If an abnormal observation is spotted during the data compilation process, the authenticity of data is reviewed.

Data compilation

Data for the member companies of the Finnish Forest Industries is received from the Finnish Forest Industries. Data on wood trade from other data providers is received directly. The Natural Resources Institute Finland reviews and saves the data and calculates standing and delivery sales prices weighted by wood volumes.