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Pulp production expands in China

February 8, 2012

Chinese pulp mills increasingly have to rely on imported wood chips for their wood fiber needs. In 2011, record volumes were imported, mainly from hardwood plantations in Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia. Imported wood chip costs from Vietnam have gone up 40% in two years and are closing in on the cost of chips shipped from Vietnam to Japan.

Exports of logs and lumber from the U.S. and Canada to China reached a record $2.6 billion dollars in 2011

February 8, 2012

The U.S. and Canada exported record volumes of logs and lumber to China in 2011. Exports in 2011 are likely double those seen in 2010 to reach an estimated value of $2.6 billion. Lumber shipments from Canada alone will reach almost over $1.1 billion. The North American share of softwood log and lumber import volumes to China increased from 5% in 2005 to 37% in 2011.

U.S. woody biomass prices have dropped the past three years

February 1, 2012

Relatively low fossil fuel prices have reduced the demand and prices of woody biomass throughout the U.S. during the past three years. The Pacific Northwest currently has the lowest biomass prices, slightly lower than the South, while the Northeast continues to see some of the highest prices in the country.

Sawlog prices decline broadly

February 1, 2012

Slowing lumber markets throughout the world have resulted in declining sawlog prices in many of the major lumber-producing regions in Europe and North America, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly. The biggest price reductions occurred in Japan, Sweden, Poland and Russia.

A scramble for Australian timber

December 5, 2011

Plantation ownership in Australia is in transition after the Management Investment Scheme (MIS) program collapsed in 2009, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly. Foreign pension funds and pulp companies have shown increased interest in acquiring timber assets as forest plantations owners have gone into receivership.  

U.S. and Canada exporting logs and lumber to China at record pace

December 1, 2011

The U.S. and Canada have been exporting record volumes of logs and lumber to China in 2011. The Wood Resource Quarterly predicts that exports in 2011 will double 2010 totals to reach an estimated $2.6 billion. Lumber shipments from Canada alone could reach $1.2 billion this year. The North American share of China’s log and lumber import volume has increased from 4%  in 2005 to 18% in 2010.

Global hardwood pulp producers face higher wood fiber costs and lower pulp prices

November 22, 2011

Higher wood fiber costs and lower product prices are squeezing profit margins for many hardwood pulp producers worldwide. The hardwood wood fiber price index (HFPI) reached a 24-year high in Q3 2011, as hardwood pulp prices fell 26% from June through October.

Asia’s increasing demand for wood drives sawlog prices up in the US and Canada

May 28, 2011

Sawlog prices in Western US were up about 20 percent in 2010 as an result of increased competition for logs from log buyers in China, South Korea and Japan, according to the North American Wood Fiber Review. Prices for logs in the US South and Canada also moved up last year, but at a slower rate. Sawmills in Western Canada currently have some of the lowest wood costs in the world. 

Wood pellet exports from North America to Europe has doubled in just two years

May 17, 2011

Over the past two years, North America has become a major supplier of wood pellets to Europe. In 2010, an estimated 1.6 million tons of pellets were shipped from the US and Canada to the Netherlands, the UK and Belgium, according to the North American Wood Fiber Review. This is a doubling of volume compared to 2008.

US and Canadian log and lumber exports to China up over 150 percent in 2010

April 23, 2011

The value of softwood logs and lumber exported from North America to China reached over 1.6 billion dollars in 2010, which was 150 percent higher than the previous year and more than ten times as much as in 2006

Japan's imports of logs, lumber set to increase on post-disaster rebuilding

March 30, 2011

Japan is in urgent need of pre-fabricated houses and manufactured wood products in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country in early March. Longer term, it can be expected that imports of commodity products such as plywood, lumber and logs will increase to this country, which is already one of the largest importers of wood products in the world, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly

US and Canadian log and lumber exports to China up over 150 percent in 2010

March 3, 2011

The value of softwood logs and lumber exported from North America to China reached over 1.6 billion dollars in 2010, which was 150 percent higher than the previous year and more than ten times as much as in 2006

Wood fiber costs for Eastern Canada pulp mills the lowest in 10 years

February 23, 2011

Over the past 20 years, pulp mills in Eastern Canada have consistently had higher wood fiber costs than the mills in the Western provinces with the exception of a short period in 1995, according to the North American Wood Fiber Review. In the 4Q/10, softwood chip prices had fallen in Quebec and Ontario and increased in British Columbia and Alberta resulting in the smallest cost gap between the two regions in 10 years.   

European sawmills’ profits squeezed by high log costs and reduced lumber prices

February 15, 2011

Sawlog costs in Europe have gone up more than lumber prices the past year. With the expected decline in lumber consumption, many sawmills in Europe are considering reductions in their operating rates. As a consequence, prices for sawlogs are likely to drop from their two–year highs in the coming months.

China’s hunger for wood pushes timber prices upward, also increases imports

November 15, 2010

The forest industry in China is continuing its expansion, and with limited domestic timber resources, importation of logs and wood chips are at an all-time high, especially as tight supply of domestic logs has increased local log prices to new highs in the 2Q/10.

Biomass prices in the US has increased after having trended downward 18 months

October 25, 2010

Prices of wood fiber used for energy declined during most of the recession in the US, partly as a result of the low cost of fossil fuels, which can serve as an alternative source for many industrial energy consumers. However, in the 3Q, biomass prices were up in the South, the Northwest and Southwest, according to the North American Wood Fiber Review. This trend break occurred mainly because of reduced fiber supply and generally lower biomass inventories.

Wood fiber costs for the global pulp industry fell in the 2Q/10

October 8, 2010

The global pulp industry benefited from lower wood fiber costs and higher product prices in the 2Q/10. Wood chip and pulpwood prices fell the most in the US, Sweden, Finland, Australia and Eastern Canada. Both the softwood and hardwood wood fiber price indices (SFPI and HFPI) fell for the first time since early 2009.

Global trade of timber has increased after having fallen 30 percent in two years

October 3, 2010

Higher worldwide demand for forest products has increased global shipments of softwood logs by 20 percent in 2010, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly. This year may be a turning point for global log trade, which had fallen 30 percent between 2007 and 2009. 

Energy companies in Europe show interest in sourcing biomass from the US

August 6, 2010

Woody biomass in the US South is attracting interest from European energy companies in their search for long-term, reliable and competitively priced supply source. The increased competition for wood fiber has pushed pine pulpwood prices upward in the Southeastern states this past year.  

Eucalyptus log prices in Brazil have gone up 25% the past year

July 22, 2010

The supply and demand for Eucalyptus logs in Brazil has been in balance the past year, which has resulted in stable log prices in the local currency. As a result of the strengthening Real, log costs have gone up in US dollar terms and were 25 percent higher in the 1Q/10 than in early 2009. 

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