Canadian Lumber Exports to Japan on The Increase in Q1 2024
After facing several years of headwinds including slowing housing starts and intensifying competition from European and Japanese domestic producers, Canadian lumber exports to Japan have begun to rebound. The surge in lumber prices during the pandemic prompted a decline of lumber export volumes to Japan. Canadian lumber exports to Japan fell 27.1% to 476.9 MFBM in 2022 and a further 17.2% to 395 MFBM in 2023. However, Canadian exports shipments have turned positive over the past two quarters. In Q4 of 2023 export volumes increased by 33.6% to 120.9 MFBM and in Q1 2024 export volumes increased 26.7% to 107.3 MFBM. Let’s hope the trend continues to be our friend and our exports to Japan keep headed in the right direction!
COFI has launched COFI Connect, a new data platform tailored for the forestry sector. Providing up-to-date insights and analysis, COFI Connect offers a series of specialized dashboards, including live data on Canadian forest product exports, BC harvest levels, stumpage rates, softwood lumber production and more! This service is a valuable resource for industry professionals, policymakers, and researchers alike. The platform is available to COFI members, and non-members can subscribe for access. For more information, visit https://cofi.org/connect/