25 January 2012

European parquet consumption in 2011: stable picture, with important variations in different markets.

FEP, the European Federation of the Parquet Industry with seat in Brussels, presently estimates that based on preliminary information obtained from member companies and discussed at the recent DOMOTEX fair in Hannover, global parquet consumption in 2011 on the European market remained stable in comparison with the previous year. The general picture, however, is not uniform and the market performance varies considerably from country to country. First indications point towards a similar situation as regards parquet production, though complete data are not yet available at this stage. FEP wishes to underscore that this is a first prognosis and that variations still cannot be excluded at the present time. In accordance with the past practice, full and definitive data will only be diffused at the federations General Assembly in early June.
The preliminary result is in line with expectations & and developments witnessed in the course of the past year and reflects the impact of the prolonged economic and financial crisis dragging on for an excessive period of time, and certainly longer than the industry and all other echelons of society had hoped for. “Under the circumstances, the overall performance of our industry is certainly commendable. Parquet is very much alive and one can only hope that the promising results attained by certain countries will gradually spread to other regions as well thereby contributing to the much desired uniformity in the FEP territory”, commented FEP President Lars Gunnar Andersen. The data received by FEP suggest that the total parquet consumption in the EU/EFTA area has stabilized at around 95 million m², with growth especially on the German, Austrian, Swiss and Swedish markets. Some other important countries are still facing difficulties, though there are first indications of a slow but gradual unbending of the protracted strain in Spain. Raw material availability and related cost evolution, as well as the persisting fierce competition with products from Asian countries remain the main concerns for our European parquet producers and are both an obstacle and a challenge for developing sound and lasting future business strategies. Nonetheless and in spite of the shaky recent economic indicators of the European Commission, the resilience, creativity & innovative edge of the FEP member companies, as well as the top quality of European parquet fuel the conviction that our industry is very much up to the challenges it has been facing for the past few years and will emerge a winner when it comes to the crunch.

FEP General Assembly 2012 & attribution of the first FEP Award
As a result of the invitation of its Turkish member, the meanwhile 56th General Assembly & 37th European Parquet Congress of the European Federation of the Parquet Industry will be held on 7 & 8 June in the fabulous city of Istanbul on the Bosphorus. This special occasion will be graced by the attribution of the first FEP Award to a person, company, organization or authority having made a significant contribution to the parquet sector. In continuation of past tradition, the entire FEP Team genuinely looks forward to welcoming the members, colleagues and international guests to the one and only annual forum of the European Parquet Industry.
For more information contact Mr. Endre Varga:

FEP (European Federation of the Parquet Industry)
Rue Montoyer 24
BE-1000 Brusells (Belgium)
Tel. +32 2 556 25 87
Fax +32 2 2870875
E-mail: info@parquet.net