China Wood Products Prices

16-31th July 2006

US Dollar Exchange Rates of  28th July 2006
China Yuan 7.971
Report from China  

Demand for timber for home improvement tapers off
Prices of timber products for interior decoration and home improvement have fallen markedly in Beijing while those for furniture manufacturing were more stable and for construction continued to surge. Sales and prices of Korean pine and larch and Russian Scotch pine were edging up. However, prices for plywood, MDF and particle board were flat. Prices for mouldings, wooden strips, block board, wooden floors and wooden furniture fell 5% in average in June. Local analysts said slow sales of commercial housing due to increasing prices was affecting demand for timber for interior decoration and home improvement. Meanwhile, large scale projects for the 2008 Olympics are driving the demand for timber for construction.

China chalks further expansion in timber production 
According to China’s State Forestry Administration (SFA), the output of commercial timber, bamboo, and major processed timber products continued to grow in 2005.

The production of China’s commercial timber is mainly located in 10 provinces, in collective forests of the middle-southern regions and state-owned forests of Northeast and Inner Mongolia regions, accounting for an aggregate 77.2% of the national total.

The figure above shows that six provinces in the middlesouthern regions (Fujian, Guangxi, Jiangxi, Hunan,Guangdong and Anhui) accounted for half of the national total while four provinces in the northern temperate zone (Heilongjiang, Jilin, Inner Mongolia and Da Xing’an Ling) accounted for just under 27%. This indicates a trend of production shifting from traditional northern temperate natural forest zones to subtropical and tropical forest regions, particularly plantations. The production of tropical timber (mainly from plantations), in particular,grew dramatically (65.3%).

Most of the bamboo production (81%) took mainly place in six provinces in the middle southern regions in 2005:Fujian (258.5 million pieces), Guangxi (196.4 million pieces), Yunnan (141.6 million pieces), Zhejiang (117.1 million pieces), Guangdong (111.8 million pieces) and Hunan (108.9 million pieces). Sawnwood was mainly produced in 5 provinces, Zhejiang (3 million m3),Shandong (2.28 million m3), Hunan (1.61 million m3),Fujian (1.18 million m3) and Jilin (1.14 million m3),accounting for half of the national total.

Wood-based panels were primarily produced in three provinces: Shandong (12.1 million m3), Jiangsu (11.45 million m3) and Hebei (9.02 million m3). The production of plywood was undertaken mainly in Jiangsu (5.56 million m3, 22.1%), Shandong (4.61 million m3, 18.3%) and Hebei (4.09 million m3, 16.3%). Fiberboard was mainly produced in five provinces, Shandong (4.26million m3, 20.7%), Guangdong (2.62 million m3,12.7%), Jiangsu (2.49 million m3, 12.1%), Guangxi (1.66 million m3, 8.1%) and Hebei (1.41 million m3, 6.8%). The production of particle board was comparatively scattered, with the top producers being Shandong (1.29 million m3, 22.5%) and Hebei (1.13 million m3, 9.1%). Other wood-based panels consisted largely of blockboard (79%), produced principally in Jiangsu (2.86 million m3,23%), Hebei (2.4 million m3, 19%), Shandong (1.94 million m3, 15.6%) and Zhejiang (1.16 million m3, 9.3%).

Abbreviations

LM        Loyale Merchant, a grade of log parcel	Cu.m         Cubic Metre
QS         Qualite Superieure	Koku         0.278 Cu.m or 120BF
CI          Choix Industriel	FFR            French Franc
CE         Choix Economique	SQ              Sawmill Quality
CS         Choix Supplimentaire	SSQ            Select Sawmill Quality
FOB      Free-on-Board	FAS            Sawnwood Grade First and
KD        Kiln Dry	Second
AD        Air Dry	WBP           Water and Boil Proof
Boule    A Log Sawn Through and Through	MR              Moisture Resistant
the boards from one log are bundled	pc         per piece
together	ea                each
BB/CC  Grade B faced and Grade C backed	MBF           1000 Board Feet
Plywood	MDF           Medium Density Fibreboard
BF         Board Foot	F.CFA         CFA Franc
Sq.Ft     Square Foot	Price has moved up or down