US Dollar Exchange Rates of 14th Apr. 2009
China Yuan 6.8366
Report from China
China stepping forward as leader in plantation areas
According to the State Forestry Administration, plantation
areas in China reached 53.3 million hectares, accounting
for nearly 40% of the world¡¯s total. The forest area is
increasing at a rate of 4 million ha annually in China,
compared to an annual global decrease of over 6 million
hectares. With forest plantations increasing in area by 53%
globally, China was still viewed as the country in which
forest resources grew most quickly, with plantations
expected to absorb a significant amount of carbon dioxide.
Log imports through Erlianhot Port rise in February
According to a report from the Erlianhot Entry-Exit
Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region, 1,490 batches of logs totaling
111,500 m³ valued at USD16 million were accepted at the
Port in February 2009, up 52% by volume and 50% by
value respectively over January 2009 levels. These gains
are the result of two factors. The first relates to the
Russian government¡¯s postponement of full
implementation of its log export tariff policy to 2010,
which would hike export tariffs on logs to 80%. Secondly,
at the domestic level, the Chinese government has adopted
a series of policies to stimulate demand for logs, increase
investment and expand construction, among other
measures. These measures have resulted in helping to
drive demand in domestic markets, and therefore, promote
log imports.
Manzhouli City issues regulation to boost wood processing industry
Manzhouli City, one of the major areas for importing
Russian logs in China, recently issued a new regulation to
encourage, support and guide development of the wood
processing industry. The city plans to establish a fund to
support the wood processing industry and help enterprises
obtaining financing to support their future development. It
has also prepared and organized annual international
forums on the development of the wood industry and other
wood products fairs. A network on wood products
transactions will also be established to promote the wood
industry in the city.
Manzhouli City is now host to 107 wood processing
enterprises with total capacity of 5 million m³, of which,
30% have downstream processing programs. Due to the
increase in export tariffs in Russia during 2008, imports of
Russian logs dropped and local processing of timber
reduced. However, the output value of large wood
processing enterprises skyrocketed to 3.4 billion yuan in
2008, up 130% over the last year, accounting for 60% of
total industrial output value in the city.
Volume of wood flooring sales declines for first time
Impacted by the global financial crisis, China¡¯s export of
wooden flooring suffered a severe setback in the fourth
quarter of 2008. Due to lack of activity in the real estate
sector, domestic timber markets were also slack. The total
sales volume of wooden flooring in the country dropped
for the first time in 2008 after successive growth over a
twelve year period. According to data from the Flooring
Specialty Committee of China¡¯s National Forest Products
Industry Association, the gross sales volume of wooden
flooring in the country was about 344 million m² in 2008,
down 4.8% from last year. Of the total, laminated flooring
fell 10% to 198 million m²; solid wood flooring dropped
4.5% to 42 million m²; wooden composite flooring was
down 4% to 78 million m²; bamboo flooring fell 20% to
24 million m²; and other types of flooring were down 10%
to 1.8 million m².
China¡¯s timber and furniture outputs continue to increase in 2008
According to a statistics bulletin on the national economy
and societal development in 2008, China¡¯s production of
timber was 78.94 million m³, up 13% over 2008.
According to the Chinese Furniture Association, the
output value of China¡¯s furniture industry (including nonwood
furniture) accounted for 648 billion yuan in 2008, up
17.8% over the last year. Of the total, output value of
large-scaled enterprises reached 242.5 billion yuan, up
20% over the last year. The export value of furniture
(including non-wood furniture) was about USD26.9 billion
in 2008, up 21.5% over the last year.
¡¡ |
