In reviewing 2019, where Europe is grouped as “one region,” the five largest producers are Europe, the U.S., Canada, Russia and China – together, they represented 86 per cent of global production. The other producing regions are relatively small and include Japan (2.4%) and four plantation-pine countries (7.2%).

When grouped by continent, four regions account for 90 per cent of global production: Europe, North America, Asia and Russia.

Total global softwood lumber production trends in 2019 mirrored the pace of consumption growth – up 1.0 per cent versus 2018. Russian and the CIS region recorded production gains of 7 per cent in 2019, while Europe achieved an increase of about 2 per cent. However, most other regions (the U.S., Canada, Japan) all recorded small losses due to slower demand.