NEWS

There is little sign of relief in the hardwood market.

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AHEC European Market Report June 2021

For the first time, federal prosecutors used tree DNA to help convict an illegal logger who stole bigleaf maple lumber from a national forest in Washington state. Federal investigators matched DNA from stumps in the forest with timber sold to local mills.

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A coronavirus outbreak in southern China has clogged ports critical to global trade. The resulting shipping backlog could take months to clear. Some of the world's busiest ports are located in Guangdong, which has locked down communities, canceled flights, and suspended trade along the coastline in an attempt to bring the spike in COVID-19 cases under control.

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Vietnam's wood products exports are forecast to grow to a record $15-16 billion this year, a 20-28% increase over last year. In the first five months of 2021, Vietnamese wood exports shot up by 61%.

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China's timber manufacturers, at-risk forests in the Solomon Islands, and European importers are the focus of the Environmental Investigation Agency's recent report that claims that consumers of tropical plywood are inadvertently causing forest degradation. According to EIA, European companies appear to have imported thousands of tons of tropical-faced plywood that have a high risk of containing illegal wood, a violation of European law.