The Finnish Forest Industries' press release is timed to coincide with Finance Ministry deliberations on the issue. The government has proposed halving the sales tax on timber until 2010, and keeping a 25 percent reduction on sales until 2011.
But until the details are clarified and the measure is passed, many private forest owners have put a freeze on sales.
The Finnish Forest Industries' director Anne Brunila is alarmed that sales of timber to forestry companies have dropped by two-thirds in the past two weeks. She says that if the dearth of raw materials continues, it could mean temporary production halts at mills and factories.
