Exports of solid-wood products from Brazil rose by 1.8% to $3.97 billion in 2006

Mar 02, 2007. /Lesprom Network/. Exports of solid-wood products from Brazil rose 1.8% to $3.97 billion in 2006 helped by growing exports of added-value products, ITTO reported. In contrast, exports of primary wood products fell across the board. Exports of pine sawnwood exports dropped 9.4% to $275.3 million (down 14.5% to 1.33 million m³) while those of tropical sawnwood slid 1.4% to $570.4 million (down 12.3% to 1.54 million m³). Exports of pine plywood also dropped 15% to $438 million (down 38% to 1.65 million m³) while those of tropical plywood fell more sharply (23%) to $212.5 million (down 38% to 453,800 m³). Wooden furniture exports retreated in 2006, sinking 6.7% to $813.6 million. These products accounted for 58% of the export value of solid-wood products in 2006, down from 65% in 2005. The decrease in the share of these products was largely due to the strong appreciation of the Brazilian currency against the US dollar during 2006 that reduced the competitiveness of the Brazilian products in international markets. Moreover, other solid-wood products (some value-added products such as moulding and wood flooring) as well as reconstituted-wood panels increased their export value in 2006, offsetting the reduction in exports of sawnwood, plywood and wooden furniture. Brazilian solid-wood products exports in perspective Over the past several years, Brazilian exports of solid-wood products grew fuelled by the huge consumption in the US civil construction industry. From 2001 to 2004, Brazilian exports of these products grew at an average of 20% a year. However, in the last two years, the export volume of solid-wood products to the USA has declined significantly amid the continued strengthening of the Brazilian real, increasing cost of wood raw materials (large-diameter logs) and growing taxes on Brazilian plywood. In 2005, import orders from the USA fell drastically which has led to adjustments in production capacity in Brazil. Currently, some tariff barriers contribute to limit the participation of some Brazilian solid-wood products in international markets. In addition to the 8% US duty on Brazil pine plywood, Mexico also imposed a import duty of 23.5% on the product. The duty has out priced the Brazilian plywood from the Mexican market. Technical barriers, such as CE marking and other construction standards, have hindered exports to European markets. According to some Brazilian analysts, although many Brazilian companies have abided by such requirements, some European countries have not properly applied the norms and continued importing from companies that do not meet the standards, mainly from China and Russia.