The chairman of the Association of Indonesian Forest Concession Holders (APHI), Indroyono Soesilo, said that wood product exports through to November 2020 were recorded at US$10.13 billion which is around 5% less than the same period last year.
“At the global economic level, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the forestry industry sector to weaken, which is marked by a decline in the export performance of forest products compared to 2019,” said Indroyono. Indroyono explained that in January 2020 exports of wood products increased 2.1% year-on-year and in February there was also a rise in the value of exports.
However, beginning March, exports started to drop sharply and by April there was a 4% year-on-year decline. The worst month was May when there was an 8% decline, but between June and November, there were some months when there was a year-on-year rise in the value of exports.
Indroyono projects that by the end of the year, forestry product exports will reach US$11 billion.
Source: International Tropical Timber Organization Tropical Timber Market Report
