Construction timber prices soared and observed the trend of furniture materials

Market depth observation reveals the rise and fall of timber prices

China's demand is pushing up the price of construction timber such as North American SPF, Russian pine, New Zealand and Australian radiata, while furniture prices, especially Southeast Asia, are mostly down. Is the wood really up?

After investigation, the reporter found that although some of the imported timber has increased in price due to the impact of the US economic recovery, there is almost no wood that can be used for furniture. The saying that most furniture raises prices through the “price increase of raw materials” is only an excuse. In the subsequent investigation, the reporter contacted an imported timber wholesaler. Under his guidance, the reporter found such a set of data: in 2012, China's log imports for the first time showed a negative growth, and decreased by 4,443,100 cubic meters compared with the same period in 2011, so in addition to New Zealand timber increased by 4.59% over the same period of the previous year, other Imports of log importing countries have declined overall, of which Russia’s timber imports amounted to 11.183 million cubic meters, down 20.52% from 2011.

"The price of wood in Southeast Asia has been falling for some time. The price increase is pine in the United States, Canada and other places." A manager engaged in 20 years of import and export of wood products told reporters that the former is mainly used for furniture. The pines of the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and even Russia are all construction materials, and the proportion of furniture is very low. “The rising prices of construction materials generally only increase the cost of builders and construction companies,” he said.

In the port of Ruoyi, Jiangsu, the huge manipulators took up dozens of Russian white pines of different thickness and transported them from the cargo ship to the land. The huge shore crane put the small grab into the cargo hold, and the machine roared. New spring weather.

In the past few days, Song Huiqun, the general manager of Jiangsu Gangrong International Trade Co., Ltd., has been busy receiving customers from all over the country. This round of price increases has also brought new opportunities to him for 10 years.

His purchase order shows that the domestically imported timber Russian white pine has increased its price by 45.5% for 10 months. In April 2012, logs of 14 to 20 cm in diameter were quoted at $112 per cubic metre, compared to $163 before and after the Spring Festival this year.

Although the prices of domestic ports are slightly different, for example, Shandong Laoshan, the imported timber arrival port, has broken through the Australian A type of Australian radiata pine by 1,000 yuan per cubic meter, compared with 930 yuan before the Spring Festival. “The raw materials have risen too fast, but when it comes to the finished product, there is still a process.” Song Huiqun said.

According to news from China Wood Information Network, North American timber prices continue to rise. Except for the need for large-scale timber for post-disaster reconstruction due to hurricane damage in the United States, the United States has eliminated punitive import tariffs on Canadian softwood timber, making “Gasong” flows to the United States, and the amount of wood exported to China is reduced.

According to the data currently available, from January to November 2012, the number of US housing starts was 750,000, up more than 20% year-on-year. Industry insiders predict that 900,000 housing starts in 2013 should be easy to achieve, and even hope to exceed 100. Million sets. "The United States is only the price of building materials, and it has no direct relationship with wood for furniture." Song Huiqun said.

Furniture material is now deserted

According to the survey, the most imported timbers in China are spruce, hemlock and red pine, which are mainly used for interior decoration, outdoor gardening, construction, and finally furniture.

On February 8, the prices of the three types of wood were $397 per cubic metre, and rose to $408 on February 15, compared to $284 per cubic metre in the same period last year.

Information from the imported timber market in Beijing Dongba shows that the main imported furniture wood in this city is walnut, oak, maple, cherry, etc., and it is completely irrelevant to the recent round of price increase. The national timber price on February 17th showed that the hardwood market is still closed, and Burmese rosewood and Burmese rosewood have not gone up. At the same time, because of the Spring Festival holiday, the shipment of red walnut and other woods fell to the freezing point, and the market was cold.

"In addition, from the price increase of imported raw materials to the price increase of end products, it still needs a period of market digestion. If a furniture manufacturer has a large inventory, the buyer can take advantage of the opportunity to clear the inventory and cut the price." Say.