BOISmag n°222
A challenging start to the season
After a summer truce marked by Olympic fervor, with Games that captured the world’s imagination, the return to work has already been underway for many professionals for several weeks. Although the long-awaited appointment of a Prime Minister finally took place in early September—after a very long suspense worthy of the best summer sagas—many questions left hanging since the dissolution of the National Assembly in early June remain, and the government’s “back-to-school” season looks thorny. Added to this are the latest construction figures, at their lowest in months, with a deepening chronic decline in new builds and, for the first time, a downturn in renovation; as well as the rush to draft the 2025 Finance Bill, which must be finalized by October 1, amid rumors of budget cuts affecting environmental programs (Green Fund, residential energy renovation, biodiversity, ADEME’s budget…). An explosive cocktail that points to difficult months ahead for reviving activity in the construction sector in general—and in wood in particular.
If our material is faring a little better than others in construction (see the latest CODIFAB figures in this issue’s report, p. 38), potential cuts to the green component of the budget are unlikely to encourage sector professionals to invest or to plan for the future with confidence. While the Olympic and Paralympic Games stood as examples of carbon neutrality, reuse, and energy sobriety, how can this possible change of course be explained? Should we content ourselves with this “Olympic exception,” or will the new government put the planet’s interests back at the heart of its concerns and future actions? The suspense continues…
Adèle Cazier