Brazil squeezed in 2012
23 January 2013Pine plywood was the only product where the Brazilian timber industry achieved an increase in exports last year as the sector saw its overseas earnings fall overall by 1.4%.
According to the latest International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) statistics, in total, Brazil's timber exports were worth US$2.36bn, against US$2.39bn in 2011.
Pine plywood exports rose 14.5% to hit US$372m (a jump in volume from 865,600m3 to 983,900m3). But this was offset by falls in pine sawnwood from US$170m to US$158m, tropical sawnwood from US$238m to US$194m, and tropical plywood from US$46m to US$36m. The latter represented a volume fall from 75,000m3 to 58,000m3.
Para state remains one of Brazil's biggest tropical timber producing and exporting states, but in 2012 it saw its share of the country's tropical sawnwood export total fall from 46% to 40%. Its overseas sales were worth US$84.2m, against US£119m in 2011 (115,200m3 against 206,800m3).
Para's tropical plywood exports were down 34% in value from US$6.2m to US$4.1m (representing a 45% volume decline to 4,900m3).
Another leading timber state, Mato Grosso, saw its tropical sawnwood exports rise 12% in volume to 812,000m3, but by value they fell from US$45m to US$43.7m.
The value of Brazil's wood furniture exports was also down 4.3%, from US$496m to US$475m.
