China Wood Products Prices

16-31th March 2007

China’s wooden door industry thrives
There are 3,000 wooden door manufacturers in China. The industry’s output is booming, expanding from 12 billion yuan in 2003 to 24 billion yuan in 2005 and to 30 billion yuan just in Jan-Sep 2006, equivalent to a 41% annual growth. The chart shows that Chinese wooden door
exports have been similarly thriving, doubling to $349 million (237,100 tonnes) in 2005 and matching 2005 levels just in the first three quarters of 2006. Exports of wooden doors are estimated to reach $500 million in 2006.

The chart below shows that China’s wooden doors go mainly to the USA, Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea.

China’s main door exporting provinces are scattered
throughout the country, including Liaoning (21% of the national export value), Guangdong (16%), Zhejiang (11%), Fujian and Shandong (9% each) and Jiangsu (8%).

China is the world leader in bamboo flooring
China’s bamboo industry is a world leader in terms of size and technology. China has 5.2 million ha of bamboo forests and 35 million farmers involved in its plantation and management and in the manufacturing of bamboo products. China produced 30 million m2 of bamboo flooring in 2005, 60% of which was exported to Europe and North America.

Poplar is the dominant plantation species in China
According to statistics from the China’s poplar industry, the country has 7 million ha of poplar plantations, the largest in the world. Around 3.1 million ha of this total is for timber production, accounting for 40% of the national poplar plantation area. This fast growing and high yielding
species is planted in plains of middle latitude. Poplar is the dominant fast growing plantation species in China. Around 74 poplar species are distributed in 24 provinces throughout the country. The China’s timber processing industry depends on plantation timber since the
implementation of the National Protection Programme. The country invested 1.5 bilion yuan in the plantation of 3.7 million ha of fast growing and high yielding species during the tenth Five-Year Plan period (2001-2005) alone. Half of this area was of poplar plantation.

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