Nov 18, 2008. /Lesprom.com/. Japan’s imports of Russian logs dropped by almost 40% since the start of the year, when compared to the same period in 2007, ITTO reported. The lumber industry has been slow to respond to the fall in Russian imports, whereas the plywood industry has been quick to respond to the use of domestic lumber. At present, Russian demand for logs has not been high. Moreover, it was noted that weather conditions in Russia during June and July 2008 resulted in deteriorated log quality, causing problems for Japanese importers. China was purchasing logs near the Russia/China border, as China purchases a wide variety of Russian materials.