The main suppliers are European countries which reported declines in shipments to Japan, however. Finland, i.e. mainly Stora Enso, had the best result with 144,000 m³ (-3%). Imports from Romania, mainly represented by the company Holzindustrie Schweighofer, fell by almost one third to 59,000 m³. It is followed by Austria (47,000 m3; -5%) and Estonia (24,000 m3; -5%).
April’s and May’s imports were more dynamic compared to the previous months. While performance was better in April, imports remained on last year’s level in the month of May.
Japan glue-laminated timber May 2018 | |||
Japan Imports of glue-laminated and cross-laminated timber (1,000 m³) |
|||
Country |
Jan–May 2017 |
Jan–May 2018 |
Change in % |
Finland |
149 |
144 |
–3 |
Romania |
85 |
59 |
–31 |
Austria |
49 |
47 |
–5 |
Estonia |
25 |
24 |
–5 |
Russia |
23 |
21 |
–9 |
Poland |
1 |
17 |
– |
Indonesia |
8 |
13 |
59 |
China |
13 |
11 |
–15 |
Germany |
10 |
11 |
4 |
Sweden |
8 |
9 |
17 |
Philippines |
0.2 |
0.8 |
285 |
Other countries |
0.8 |
0.7 |
–6 |
Total |
373 |
358 |
–4 |
Source: Statistics Japan (preliminary data) | © Holzkurier 2018