Brazil’s Forest Products Sector Records Steady Growth, January – May 2017
(Sao Paulo, Brazil, July 20, 2017) The Brazilian Tree Industry (Ibá) reported that the trade balance for the Brazilian planted tree industry reached US$2.9 billion from January to May of 2017 — growth of 4.9% compared to the same period last year. During the year, the sector accumulated total exports of US$ 3.3 billion, 3.2% higher than the same period in 2016. Pulp sales abroad reached US$ 2.4 billion (+4.1%), while foreign sales of paper were US$ 767 million (-2.0%) and of wood panels were US$ 113 million (+25.6%).
Production. Brazilian pulp production reached 8 million tons (+5.3%) between January and May of 2017, and paper registered 4.3 million tons (-0.6%).
Exports. Demand for Brazilian pulp remains high in the international market. During the first five months of the year 5.5 million tons of pulp were exported, an expansion of 4.7% over the same five months of 2016. The paper sector recorded exports of 892,000 tons (+1.8%), and wood panels reached 490,000 cubic meters (+36.5%).
Destination of Exports. China has maintained its position as the main destination for Brazilian pulp, representing more than 43% of the total exported by Brazil and generating income of approximately US$1 billion for the year, an increase of 27.7% compared to the first five months of 2016. Meanwhile, Latin America remains the main market for the paper and wood panel sectors, generating revenues of US$ 492 million (+10.3%) and US$ 62 million (+26.5%), respectively.
Domestic Sales. Sales of paper and wood panels on the domestic market remained stable at 2.1 million tons and 2.6 million cubic meters, respectively.
To learn more about Ibá, please visit: www.iba.org (Source: Brazilian Tree Industry (Ibá))
