The European plywood market is undergoing a rapid period of change. Since the start of recession in 2008, the market has become less and less willing to pay premium prices for tropical hardwood plywood. Instead it has opted for plywood manufactured in alternative hardwood species. The emergence of China as a major supplier of large volumes of hardwood plywood at competitive prices played an important role to drive this change. Now the market looks set to alter again. This time the main driver is likely to be the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR), to be enforced from March 2013. EUTR will require that EU importers have access to documents demonstrating negligible risk of any wood product coming from an illegal source. This will present challenges for suppliers of wood products that rely on long and complex supply chains – such as many Chinese plywood manufacturers.
Continue reading “European Plywood Market Undergoing Rapid Change – ITTO European Market Report 15th December 2012”ITTO European Market Report 15th November 2012
1. Key business sentiment indicators
Drawing on Eurostat data, the four charts below provide a snapshot of recent trends in market sectors important to the European wood industry. Data is provided for the EU as a whole and for the seven EU countries that are the largest individual markets for Chinese wood products in Europe. Overall, they indicate low levels of business confidence and particularly weak activity in the European construction sector. However there are some signs of recent improvements in business confidence in a few EU Member States in September and October 2012.
Continue reading “ITTO European Market Report 15th November 2012”EU in International Trade – ITTO European Market Report 15th October 2012
In 2007, prior to the economic crises in Europe, the EU as a whole contributed 22% of the value of all global imports of timber products (Chart 1). As such, it was the world’s largest single importer of timber. Since then, the EU has declined in relative importance, in 2011 accounting for 17% of global wood imports, and is now a smaller importer than China (which in 2011 accounted for 19% of global timber imports). The relative decline is associated both with the rising importance of China as a consumer and manufacturer of timber products and with the dramatic decline in European consumption in response to broader economic trends. Nevertheless, Europe maintains a prominent position in the global wood trade, not only because of trade volume, but also due to the leading role of European retailers, manufacturers, designers and brands in wood product innovation, design and marketing, and of European policy makers in setting of technical and environmental standards.
Continue reading “EU in International Trade – ITTO European Market Report 15th October 2012”Very Challenging European Market for Tropical Hardwood Plywood – ITTO European Market Report 15th December 2011
The European market for tropical hardwood plywood faces numerous challenges. Sales prices of existing landed stocks are under pressure as consumption is slow in the winter season and, with the European economic situation so fragile, few importers are now expecting a significant rise in sales next year. However, rising production costs in the Far East mean that shippers either have to raise prices – currently very difficult in an unreceptive market – or to cut costs. Many are choosing the latter course and compromising on quality.
Continue reading “Very Challenging European Market for Tropical Hardwood Plywood – ITTO European Market Report 15th December 2011”European Economic Situation Deteriorates – ITTO European Market Report 30th November 2011
The economic outlook in Europe has deteriorated rapidly and alarmingly in recent weeks. The following quote from the latest edition of the Economist is typical of current media coverage in the region:
“First Greece; then Ireland and Portugal; then Italy and Spain. Month by month, the crisis in the euro area has crept from the vulnerable periphery of the currency zone towards its core, helped by denial, misdiagnosis and procrastination by the euro-zone’s policymakers. Recently Belgian and French government bonds have been in the financial markets’ bad books. Investors are even sniffy about German bonds.
Continue reading “European Economic Situation Deteriorates – ITTO European Market Report 30th November 2011”Eurozone Crises Severely Damages European Economic Sentiment – ITTO European Market Report 14th November 2011
The eurozone debt crises is having an increasingly malign influence on economic growth and sentiment across Europe. The eurozone itself is almost certainly back in recession, dashing hopes that it can grow its way out of trouble. In a forecast issued in the second week of November, the European Commission warns that “sharply deteriorating confidence and intensified financial turmoil are affecting investment and consumption, while urgent fiscal consolidation is weighing on domestic demand and weakening global economic conditions are holding back exports. The best Europe can look forward to is “a gradual and feeble return to growth” in the second half of next year, according to the Commission.
Continue reading “Eurozone Crises Severely Damages European Economic Sentiment – ITTO European Market Report 14th November 2011”Slow Recovery in EU Imports of Tropical Hardwood Logs – ITTO European Market Report 31st October 2011
During the first half of 2011, the EU imported 198,300 m3 of hardwood logs from tropical countries, a 5% increase compared to the same period in 2010. As commercially valuable logs can no longer be exported from Gabon, EU imports from all the other main producing countries in the Congo region increased dramatically during the 6 month period (Table 1).
Continue reading “Slow Recovery in EU Imports of Tropical Hardwood Logs – ITTO European Market Report 31st October 2011”EU Imports of Tropical Lumber Remain Low but Consistent – ITTO European Market Report 15th October 2011
Table 1 shows imports of hardwood lumber into the EU-25 group of countries during the January to June 2011 period. Overall imports are up only slightly compared to the same period in 2010, with most of the growth in temperate hardwood, particularly from the countries of former Yugoslavia. These countries are capable of supplying high quality oak, a timber which has consolidated its hugely dominant position in the European market this year.
Continue reading “EU Imports of Tropical Lumber Remain Low but Consistent – ITTO European Market Report 15th October 2011”Russia drives rise in EU hardwood plywood imports during the first half of 2011 – ITTO European Market Report 30th September 2011
At 630,000 m3, EU hardwood plywood imports in the second quarter of 2011 were up 12% on the previous quarter and up 9% on the same quarter of the previous year (Chart 1). Imports during the second quarter of 2011 were at levels not seen since before the onset of the economic crises in 2008. Imports over the first 6 months of 2011 stood at 1.2 million m3, up 12% on the same period in 2010.
Continue reading “Russia drives rise in EU hardwood plywood imports during the first half of 2011 – ITTO European Market Report 30th September 2011”Diversification in Europe’s Wood Product Imports – ITTO European Market Report 15th September 2011
There is a tendency when analysing markets for tropical wood in Europe to focus heavily on demand for the main primary wood products –tropical hardwood logs, sawn, veneers and plywood. However globalisation trends, particularly the strong growth of China as a wood processing hub, combined with efforts by tropical producing countries to move up the value chain, has meant that these products have become relatively less important in the European market. Tropical and other developing countries are supplying a very wide range of secondary and tertiary processed products into this market.
Continue reading “Diversification in Europe’s Wood Product Imports – ITTO European Market Report 15th September 2011”