TOKYO: Total Japanese plywood supply for the first six months of the year is 2,859,600 cbms, 14% less than the same period of last year. Domestic supply is only 5.2% less but imported plywood decreased by 20.7%. Deliveries from the three major supplying countries (Malaysia, Indonesia and China) all declined by about 20%.
Total Japanese imports for the first six months were 1,499,000 cbms. Average monthly imports were 248,400 cbms and if this level continues for next six months, total 2015 imports would be less than three million cubic metres, the lowest since 2009.
For the first half of 2014, Japan’s imports increased to meet rising demand before the consumption tax increase in April then the volume declined in the second half as the demand slowed down then since last August, the yen started depreciating rapidly.
Meantime, harvest control in Sarawak, Malaysia tightened and the log supply dropped so that future plywood prices have kept climbing. Consequently, the monthly import for last May and June dropped down to about 216,000 cbms.
Japan’s supply from Malaysia has kept dropping so the first six months supply is 631,700 cbms, 21.2% less than the same period of last year. Total year supply would be less than 1.3 million cbms.
Indonesian supply for the first six months is 436,200 cbms, 19.5% less. Total year supply would be less than one million cbms, the lowest since 2010. Chinese supply is also down by18.6% with 335,200 cbms.
Crating plywood demand of about 10,000 cbms a month shifted to Vietnamese plywood from Chinese plywood. Domestic production is 1,368,600 cbms, 5.2% less out of which softwood plywood is 1,281,800 cbms, 5% less. Japan’s average monthly production is 213,600 cbms while the domestic shipment for the first six months is 1,269,900 cbms. June end inventory was 228,400 cbms.
