Hardwood

As part of FLEGT Asia’s information collection role, a number of forest governance, markets and trade Baseline Studies have been carried out in the region. This study is done for Lao PDR.

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Keywords: International forest products markets, c. National Policy & Legislation, e. Deforestation & Degradation Drivers, Other Publications, Asia, EU, FLEGT, Lao PDR, Laos, timber, VPA

This report provides a number of illustrated maps giving an overview of the timber trade flows in Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam and their respective trading partners. The maps provide information on the import and export in value as well as volume (RWE). In addition, there are a number of maps summarising the regional Mekong trade flows. One part of these maps pictures the Mekong as one entity where exports and imports are combined. The other maps show a complete picture with all internal trade in this region.

The latest EU trade data indicates that imports of tropical hardwood logs into the region have continued to fall during the course of 2010. Overall imports during the first nine months of 2010 amounted to only 253,300 cu.m, 22% down compared to the same period in the previous year. The big decline in imports from Gabon following the country’s log export ban imposed from May 2010 has been only partially offset by increasing imports from other countries in the Congo basin.

According to the office of Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council, China had decided to remove tariffs on 4,762 commodities imported from 33 of the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Commodities with zero tariffs include wood products. The zero tariff treatment came into effect on 1 July 2010.

The countries involved are 26 African countries and 7 other countries, including Ethiopia, Benin, Burundi, Equatorial Guinea, Maldives, Nepal and Bangladesh.