Japan’s total import of North American logs in 2014 was 3,047 million cubic metres, a 10.8 per cent drop compared to the previous year.
Log imports in 2013 had increased, by 14 per cent over 2012, due to looming tax hike last year.
North American Timber Market 2014: Japan
Kure and Kashima remain the top and second ports by import volume, however volumes to Kure dropped by 20.7 per cent and at Kashima by 7.5 per cent compared to the year before.
The Japan North American Lumber Conference revealed that there is no sign of recovery for both sawmills and plywood mills domestically in Japan, so the forecast for 2015 is a 10 per cent decrease over 2014.