The Board of Directors of the European Federation of the Parquet industry, FEP, met virtually on 15 April 2021 and discussed amongst others the parquet situation on the European markets.
The European parquet markets had generally slowly started the year with stable to slightly increasing consumption in January and February. This positive trend is now accelerating in March and April, still driven by renovation.
The market situation for the three first months of 2021 is here usually compared to the same period of 2019, as 2020 was a very specific year with the surge of the Covid-19.The provisional results for the first quarter indicate increasing parquet consumption in all countries but Spain. Germany and Italy are reporting stable consumption levels during the two first months of the year but which are already rising in March and especially April.
These positive developments are nevertheless tempered by the issue of tight supplies of raw materials and their significantly increasing costs. This phenomenon does not only concern wood and wood-based products but also glues, lacquers, packaging, etc.
A brief per country recap is provided in the table below.
Market overview
| Austria
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The Austrian parquet market is performing well (+10% for the 1st quarter 2021 compared to the same period in 2020), although there are worries regarding the shortages and increasing costs of all raw materials.
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| Baltic States
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Baltic countries’ parquet markets rose by 3 to 5% during the first quarter of the current year.
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| Benelux
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Parquet consumption on Benelux markets has increased by 3% compared to the 1st quarter 2019, and order books are full for the coming months.
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| France
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Compared to the first three months of 2019, parquet consumption rose by 3 to 5% during the first quarter 2021. The French parquet market is stable to increasing despite tight supplies of raw materials, especially wood, which could hamper this positive evolution in the coming months.
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| Germany
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January and February have been quiet months on the German parquet market due to the closure of DIY shops in most of the Landers. Nevertheless, the situation has improved in March and is now booming in April. Renovation is still driving the positive trend while, as throughout Europe and beyond, availability and costs of raw materials are an issue.
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| Italy | Italian consumption of parquet has been stable at the very beginning of 2021 and is now increasing in March-April. Forecasts from September to the end of the year are pretty optimistic thanks to construction and renovation activities. However, costs of raw materials are significantly rising.
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| Nordic cluster
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The Norwegian parquet market continues to benefit from the high renovation rate while the Finnish market is catching up. All in all, the Nordic cluster is showing an increase by 3 to 5% for the first quarter 2021 compared to the same period in 2019.
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| Spain | The Spanish market for parquet slightly declined (-2%) during the first quarter of 2021 but is improving in April. Nevertheless, forecasts are not that optimistic and raw material is also here problematic with shortages and high costs.
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| Sweden
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Parquet consumption increased by 3 to 5% during the first quarter 2021 compared to the first quarter 2019. Renovation is still supporting the Swedish market for parquet although raw materials costs are staggering and could have a negative impact in the future.
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| Switzerland | The long-awaited increase of the renovation rate and use of wood in renovation is now taking place, supporting the Swiss parquet market which rose by 3 to 5% during the three first months of 2021 and compared to the 1st quarter 2019. The question is whether this positive trend is sustainable in time. Issues of raw materials availability and costs concern specifically HDF and other wood-based panels.
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FEP General Assembly & Parquet Congress 2021
The physical FEP’s 65thGeneral Assembly and 45thParquet Congress is scheduled on 21 & 22 October 2021 (tbc) in the antic city of Athens, Greece.
