Forestry industry continues to count cost of hurricane Lothar

The Swiss forestry industry is continuing to feel the effects of last December's hurricane which felled around 12 million cubic metres of wood.

At its 79th General Assembly in Solothurn on Wednesday, the Swiss Foresters’ Association said prices for timber would bottom out next year. They are then expected to rise as the surplus of wood on the market begins to decline.

In a matter of hours, Lothar brought down almost three times as much timber than is normally felled in a whole year.

The export market boomed in the wake of the disaster. Italy was the biggest destination and bought more than 43 per cent more than in a normal year.

But Austria saw the biggest increase in timber imports from Switzerland. The amount of wood it bought increased more than thirty-fold.

Sales to China rose by 20 per cent between January and May this year.

The Association also elected a new president during its assembly – the Swiss People’s Party member of parliament, Max Binder.

swissinfo with agencies