2 February 2015: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) launched the 16-30 January issue of the Tropical Timber Market (TTM) Report, which highlights a drop in German wood product imports from Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Malaysia. However, the report notes an increase over the same period in imports from Indonesia, in part due to mandatory certification of Indonesian wood products.

The report also suggests that the lack of adequate road infrastructure may begin to limit tropical timber trade in West Africa even as port capacity continues to increase. On the other hand, direct rail links to the Paranagua Container Terminal in Brazil contributed to a record handling of timber and wood products in 2014.

On the production side of trade, the report notes that shifting to imported logs has reduced the cost of plywood veneer in India, thereby maintaining the competitiveness of the industry. With regards to market trends, the continued depreciation of the Japanese Yen has pushed future prices for imported plywood above current market prices resulting in a drop in future orders. Elsewhere in Asia, the report states that the Chinese construction industry is facing a slow down due to low occupancy rates, a drop in land purchased by real estate developers, and government plans to reduce low-cost housing in a number of major cities.

In addition to the headline stories, the report contains tropical timber market reports from Brazil, China, Ghana, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar and Peru. The report further recounts regional tropical timber market statistics from Central and West Africa, Europe and North America.

The TTM is published through the ITTO Market Information Service (MIS). [Publication: Tropical Timber Market Report – Volume 19 Number 2]