China’s tropical log imports in the first half of 2017 totalled 4.43 million cubic metres, down 7% year-on-year and accounted for 17% of the national total. The value of tropical log imports in the first half of 2017 was $1.278 billion reflecting a 2.3% decline, as the company said in the press release received by Lesprom Network.
Before its log export ban Myanmar was a major source of tropical logs for China. However, China’s log imports from Myanmar in the first half of 2017 fell 14% to just 8,600 cubic metres valued at $11.36 million, down 19% in value.
The average price for imported logs from Myanmar fell 6% in the first half of 2017 to $1,326 per cubic metre. However, the average price for imported tropical logs in the first half of 2017 was $288 per cubic metre, a year-on-year increase of 5%.
China imported tropical logs mainly from Papua New Guinea (31%), Solomon Islands (28%), Equatorial Guinea (10%), Congo Brazzaville (9.6%), Cameroon (5.1%) and Nigeria (4.9%). Just 10 countries supplied 94% of China’s tropical log requirements in the first half of 2017.
Log imports from Zambia and Congo Brazzaville surged 247% and 68% in the first half of 2017 respectively. Countries from which tropical log imports declined greatly included Laos (-59%), Ghana (-36%) and PNG (-23%).
The main port for tropical log imports in the first half of 2017 was Nanjing Port which accounted for 87% of all tropical log imports.
