Finland's industrial sector received a significant boost as the value of new orders in December surged 37.7 percent compared to the same month a year earlier, according to Statistics Finland. The national statistics agency attributed the dramatic growth primarily to a few large orders within the metal industry, a detail that has sparked intense interest and speculation among economists and policymakers in Helsinki.
Senior Actuary Petri Koivisto from Statistics Finland confirmed the central role of metal industry orders but cited client confidentiality. "Unfortunately we cannot tell in more detail without the permission of our clients how the orders are distributed within the metal industry," Koivisto said. This lack of specific disclosure points to the sensitive, large-scale nature of the contracts, often linked to the maritime and heavy engineering sectors.
Metal Industry Leads Extraordinary Growth
Within the broader industrial data, the metal industry's performance was staggering. The value of new orders in that sector alone was 54.0 percent higher than in December of the previous year. This figure drastically outpaces growth in other traditional Finnish industrial pillars. The chemical industry saw a modest 3.2 percent increase in new orders for the same period.
In contrast, the manufacture of paper and paperboard products recorded a 9.5 percent decrease in the value of new orders year-on-year. This divergence highlights the shifting dynamics within Finnish industry, where technology-intensive metal and engineering sectors are pulling ahead of more traditional forest-based exports.
A Full-Year Perspective for 2025
The data also provided an early snapshot for the full calendar year 2025. The total value of new orders received by companies during 2025 was 5.7 percent greater than in 2024. Once again, this aggregate growth was driven solely by the metal industry, where the annual order value was 8.8 percent higher than the previous year.
Other sectors did not share in this annual growth. For the full year 2025, the value of new orders in the paper and paperboard industry was 1.0 percent lower than in 2024. The chemical industry also saw a slight contraction, with new orders down 2.0 percent for the year.
Construction and Sawmill Sectors Show Strength
Complementing the industrial order data, Statistics Finland reported positive momentum in construction. The seasonally adjusted turnover of construction companies grew by 5.0 percent in December 2025 compared to December 2024. The volume of sales, with the effect of price changes removed, grew by an even stronger 6.6 percent. December marked the fourth consecutive month of growth in construction activity.
Meanwhile, the sawmill industry reported a robust production year. The Finnish Sawmill Industry Association announced that production in 2025 reached 11.7 million cubic metres of sawn timber, a 7 percent increase from the previous year. Production was 10.9 million cubic metres in 2024 and 10.4 million in 2023.
The association noted that companies in the sector have made dozens of investments in Finland in recent years. "Many investments are now complete and production capacities have increased in many locations," a representative stated. "Therefore, production volumes increased across Finland, even though historically very high log prices hampered the international competitiveness of the sawmill industry throughout the year."
Industrial Production Presents a Mixed Picture
Despite the boom in new orders, industrial production itself showed a more nuanced trend. Seasonally adjusted industrial output decreased by 0.8 percent in December from the previous month. However, in a year-on-year comparison, the working-day adjusted volume of industrial production was 2.0 percent higher in December 2025 than in December 2024.
This discrepancy between surging new orders and slightly declining monthly production suggests a pipeline effect, where large new contracts have not yet translated into full-scale manufacturing output. It indicates that the positive impact on factory activity and employment may be realized more fully in the coming months of 2026.