Japan’s plywood imports down 9% in January
24 April 2019Year-on-year, the volume of Japan’s January 2019 imports of plywood were down 9%, but compared to the volume of imports in December there was a steep rise in January imports due mainly to a 34% rise in shipments from Malaysia (68,000m3 in December 2018 to 91,200m3 in January 2019), reports the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO).
As was the case in 2018, three supply countries continued to account for over 85% of Japan’s imports of plywood in January 2019. Malaysia, Indonesia and China dominate plywood imports but shippers in Vietnam are steadily securing market share.
January shipments from China were little changed year-on-year and month on month but Indonesian shipments were down 17% compared to January 2018 and were down 11% compared to a month earlier.
