Sales in the German wood industry fell by around eight percent in the period from January to November 2024. This means that another annual decline is expected for 2024 and the second year of recession in a row. According to HDH, the industry's development was negatively affected in particular by the decline in construction activity, excessive bureaucracy and consumer uncertainty.

In view of the continued decline in demand for construction as a result of high construction costs, poor financing conditions and inadequate funding for new construction, the construction-related sector and the wood-based materials industry recorded the greatest decline, each with a drop in sales of almost nine percent. Sales in the furniture industry (-7.6%), the sawmill industry (-6.8%) and the wood packaging industry (-5.5%) were also significantly below the previous year's level.

The negative sales trend also had a greater impact on employment development in the industry. The number of companies with 50 or more employees fell by almost 3 percent on average in the first eleven months of 2024 compared to the previous year. The number of employees fell even more significantly, by around 4 percent.

"The crisis is entering its third year and is increasingly affecting the substance of companies," says HDH Managing Director Denny Ohnesorge, commenting on the figures. "This is reflected in rising insolvencies and a decline in jobs. What the figures also show is that the crisis in the wood industry is being influenced by the crisis in the construction industry. Our appeal to the parties of the next federal government is therefore that housing policy must be urgently re-orientated. Builders and young families need reliable framework conditions again in order to be able to fulfill their dream of owning their own home. Politicians can influence these framework conditions with subsidies and reduced interest rates. It is important that the programs are reliably financed and have a broad target. We are also calling for more support for climate-friendly building materials in order to fully exploit the potential for affordable housing and not to lose sight of climate goals."