31 January 2014: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) has launched the 16-31 January issue of the Tropical Timber Market (TTM) Report, which highlights the increasing demand for product sustainability information from European wood purchasers. In particular, the newsletter notes that enforcement of the European Construction Products Regulation is reinforcing wide spread demand for technical performance data on timber production.

Also in the European Union (EU), the newsletter takes note of the need to expand demand for tropical timber in European markets if African timber producers are to increase exports. The bulletin reports that significant growth is expected in the German window and door industry following an increase of about 1 percent in 2013. However, in a separate story, the newsletter notes that only about 0.5 percent of wood windows in the EU are imported, mirroring a trend in EU joinery consumption favoring domestic wood products.

In Malaysia, the three biggest log companies in Sarawak have decreased production by between 3 and 16.5 percent as a result of reduced supply, while in India, teak plantations are expecting positive future trends, in part because of delayed domestic log auctions.

In Brazil, the newsletter highlights concerns over increasing industrial products tax rates, which are expected to reach 5 percent by the second half of 2014. In other regions, the newsletter reveals that Douglas fir from the US is the first foreign species to be authorized for the Wood Use Point System in Japan, while in the US, increased funding is being requested to enforce the Lacey Act to combat illegal timber imports.

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.

Access to the TTM Report, published through the ITTO Market Information Service (MIS), requires free registration. [Publication: Tropical Timber Market Report – Volume 18 Number 2]