Malaysia's timber exports, which have declined since 2006, are expected to rise by up to 10 per cent to RM21 billion this year. Chief executive officer (CEO) of Malaysian Timber Council Cheah Kam Huan said the growth forecast was underpinned by global economic recovery and the performance for the first seven months of this year. "Timber exports increased by 14.4 per cent to RM12.30 billion in the first seven months of this year compared with RM10.75 billion in the same period last year. "For the first three quarters of this year, timber exports have been moving along nicely. However, in the fourth quarter, we expect to see demand softening a little bit," he told reporters on the sidelines of the ''Dialogue on Requirement for Timber Legality Verification in the Global Market'' in Kuala Lumpur today. Cheah said for 2009, timber exports fell 14.4 per cent to RM19.49 billion from RM22.79 billion in 2008 due to world economic recession, particularly in developed nations such as the US, Japan and Europe. He said in terms of export earnings, the country received strong demand for all categories -- sawn timber, plywood and veneer except for builders carpentry and joinery.
On the weak US dollar against the ringgit, he said, exporters continued to face a challenging outlook. From the beginning of the year till now the US dollar has fallen by 10 per cent to RM3.10 from RM3.45. "Most of our timber exports are quoted in US dollar therefore our exporters face some profit erosion," he said. Meanwhile, Malaysian Timber Certification Council CEO Chew Lye Teng said certified timber exports had shown a steady increase. "An increasingly globalised trading environment is expected to increase demand for legal or sustainable timber and this is likely to continue to influence trade of timber products," he said. Chew said as at September 2010, a total of 10 forest management units held valid certificates for forest management issued under the Malaysian Timber Certification Scheme (MTCS), covering 4.83 million hectares of natural forests.
Also, a total of 160 certificates for chain of custody had been issued under MTCS, he said. The MTCS is the first tropical timber certification scheme in the Asia-Pacific to be endorsed by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Scheme (PEFC) since May 1, 2009. This endorsement enables MTCS to achieve mutual recognition with 27 other PEFC-endorsed certification schemes. Over 150 participants attended the dialogue. Among them were representatives from the government, timber trade associations, industry members and non-governmental organisations from the UK, the US, The Netherlands, Japan, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Singapore, Laos, Ghana and Malaysia. The dialogue highlighted the amended US Lacey Act, which states that it is illegal to import wood products derived from plants illegally harvested in the country of origin. It also touches on the European Union's Illegal Timber Regulation. It requires all first placers of timber in the EU market to exercise strict due diligence in their business conduct. -- Bernama
