In recent years, the demand for timber in Shanghai has grown rapidly due to expanding urban construction boosted by the building of large facilities for the 2010 World Exposition.
Currently, the Shanghai’s timber market can be described as follows:
· Demand for timber has been flourishing, driven
by real estate and the wood processing sectors.
Total annual timber demand amounts to about 6
million m3 in Shanghai. Of the total, 3 million m3
are meant for the construction materials and
interior decoration sectors, 2 million m3 for the
floors and furniture manufacturing sectors and 1
million m3 for construction form boards, pianos
and artworks. The annual consumption of timber
in Shanghai amounts to 2.4 million m3 mainly in
interior improvement and decoration,
infrastructural construction and furniture sectors.
· Sawnwood imports are larger than log imports
and the range of imported sawnwood species has
widened to dozens.
· The proportion of hardwood timber imports is
higher than pine timber imports. The national
proportion of hardwood and softwood logs is
35:65 but in Shanghai the ratio is 85:35.
· The prices of imported timber in Shanghai are
36% higher than the national average level.
· Timber import sources tend to be more
diversified. Until recent years, Shanghai imported
softwoods from North America and hardwoods
from Southeast Asia. Currently, Shanghai also
imports hardwoods from North America (e.g.,
cherry, oak and maple), Africa (e.g., sapelli and
rosewood), South America and PNG. Softwood
imports come mainly from New Zealand and
Russia while softwood imports from North
America is minimal.
Anticipated changes in the timber market
Local market analysts in Shanghai foresee the
following changes in future:
· The increase in log imports will slow while
imports of semi-processed products will rise.
· The proportion of medium and high grade
hardwood will further expand. Timber import
sources will continue to widen.
· The demand for raw materials for plywood
production will grow further.
Measures to address raw material shortage
Timber demand in Shanghai and the Yangtze River
Delta region is huge and depends largely on
imports. The Shanghai wood industry is, therefore,
facing the growing shortage of raw materials. In
addressing this problem, local experts think that the
following measures should be taken:
· Further develop an export-oriented economy;
· Implement industry integration both between
different enterprises and between upstream and
downstream enterprises;
· Implement brand strategies;
· Shift from extensive management to intensive
management. |
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