Business Trends Abroad
Turkey Introduces Mandatory First-Entry Phytosanitary Checks Affecting Oak Imports
Turkey – Turkey’s new Plant Quarantine Regulation has made phytosanitary inspection at the first authorized point of entry mandatory for affected plant products, including Oak products, according to the European Organization of the Sawmill Industry.
The European Organization of the Sawmill Industry (EOS) said the new rules do not appear to constitute an import ban. Instead, the main practical change for affected shipments is where official plant-health inspection must take place.
Under the new procedure, official inspection of products subject to agricultural quarantine must be completed at the border crossing, port or authorized entry customs office where the goods first enter the Turkish Customs Territory.
Shipments sent to an inland customs office without first undergoing the required inspection at the initial point of entry will not be opened there. EOS says they will be returned to the border crossing or port customs office where they first entered so that official inspection can be completed.
Turkey’s new Plant Quarantine Regulation was published in the Official Gazette on May 6, 2026, and entered into force on August 4, 2026, 90 days after publication.
The Turkish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry says the regulation introduces new procedures for official controls covering the import and export of plants, plant products and other regulated materials.
EOS issued its Oak-specific trade alert on August 24 after being informed of the operational impact of the new regulation on sawmill exports.
For European Oak exporters, the practical issue is therefore customs routing and phytosanitary inspection at the first authorized entry point rather than a general prohibition on Oak imports.
Exporters and Turkish importers should ensure that the selected border crossing, port or customs office is authorized to complete the relevant plant-health inspection before arranging onward inland customs movement.
Vietnam’s Large-Timber Plantations Reach 625,000 Ha As 1m-Ha Target Advances
Vietnam – Vietnam has developed approximately 625,000 hectares of production plantations for large timber, reaching about 62.5 percent of its national target of around one million hectares by 2030.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has instructed local authorities to accelerate implementation of the 2024–2030 large-timber plantation program and strengthen links between plantation resources, wood-processing facilities, transport networks and market demand.
The policy is intended to increase the domestic supply of legally sourced, higher-quality timber for Vietnam’s processing and forest-products export industries.
Vietnam aims to reach approximately 1 million hectares of production plantations managed for large timber by 2030. Current area is around 625,000 hectares.
The Forestry and Forest Protection Department published Ministry document 8667/BNNMT-LNKL on August 3, 2026, calling for continued implementation of the national large-timber plantation plan.
Provinces and cities have been asked to establish annual targets through 2030, review available forestry land and identify existing small-timber plantations that can be converted to longer-rotation large-timber production.
The ministry also called for concentrated and stable raw-material areas connected to processing facilities, transport infrastructure and market demand.
The expansion program comes as Vietnam’s forestry-product exports continue to grow. According to figures cited by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, forestry-product exports reached $18.33 billion in 2025, up 5.6 percent from 2024. The sector recorded a trade surplus of about $15.1 billion.
In the first seven months of 2026, forestry-product exports reached $10.81 billion, an increase of 4.6 percent year on year.
The ministry said large-timber development should be organized along value chains linked to sustainable forest management and forest certification.
It also called for stronger links between forest growers and wood-processing companies, from planting material and plantation management through harvesting, processing and sales.
Local authorities were instructed to strengthen oversight of timber purchasing and processing and to curb purchasing of immature plantation timber where this undermines development of higher-value raw-material supply.
German Cabinet Approves EUDR Implementation Law As Forest Owners Renew Criticism
Germany – Germany’s cabinet has approved the country’s EUDR implementation bill, moving the national enforcement framework forward. Forest-owner groups AGDW and Familienbetriebe Land und Forst say key simplifications should be written directly into law and continue to criticize sanctions and problems with the EU reporting system.
Germany’s federal cabinet has approved the country’s national implementation bill for the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), establishing the framework for enforcement ahead of the regulation’s application dates.
As of publishing date, the German government said that the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE) will be responsible for implementation and enforcement in Germany.
According to the government, the bill does not introduce obligations beyond those already required by EU law.
The two associations argue that practical simplifications proposed by the federal agriculture ministry should be included directly in the law rather than left to a General Administrative Regulation.
The associations also want the law to state clearly that forestry associations can take over individual reporting obligations on behalf of their members.
AGDW and Familienbetriebe Land und Forst also continue to oppose parts of the proposed sanctions framework. They argue that criminal provisions linked to the EU Environmental Crime Directive should not be included in the sector-specific EUDR implementation law.
These are the associations’ legal and policy positions. The German government states that the bill implements the EUDR enforcement requirements and provisions of the EU Environmental Crime Directive without creating additional obligations beyond EU law.
According to the associations, a practical test carried out in July 2026 identified problems including limited browser compatibility, lost entries, rejected addresses, inconsistent terminology and some information being available only in English.
They also criticized the use of kilograms for quantity reporting where roundwood is commonly marketed in cubic meters. These findings are association claims and are not presented as an independent technical audit of the EU system.
The cabinet approval marks a new stage in Germany’s national EUDR implementation process.
Norway Timber Exports Hit Record As Prices Fall Sharply
Norway – Norway exported a record 1.74 million meters cubed of timber in Q2 2026, equal to 46 percent of the quarter’s harvest, according to Statistics Norway. At the same time, the average industrial roundwood price fell to NOK 694/meters cubed, with Pine pulpwood and Spruce pulpwood recording the steepest year-on-year declines.
Norway’s roundwood market combined record harvest and record exports with a sharp retreat in timber prices during Q2 2026.
Statistics Norway reported 3.62 million meters cubed of industrial roundwood harvested for sale and a record 1.74 million meters cubed of timber exports. SSB says exports were equal to 46 percent of the quarter’s harvest.
SSB says the average industrial-roundwood price peaked at NOK 871/meters cubed in Q2 2025 and fell to NOK 694/meters cubed in Q2 2026, while both industrial harvest and timber exports reached record quarterly levels.
Volumes are measured under bark and based on buyer measurement dates, typically 2-8 weeks after felling. Prices are nominal, exclude VAT and are before harvesting/operating costs. Rejected timber and energy wood are excluded from the industrial-roundwood figure.
USITC Backs Duties On Hardwood Plywood Imports From China, Indonesia And Vietnam
Asia – The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC or Commission) has made affirmative final injury determinations on hardwood and decorative plywood from China, Indonesia and Vietnam. The ruling excludes all Softwood structural plywood and follows Commerce’s July final antidumping and countervailing duty determinations.
The USITC has made affirmative final injury determinations on hardwood and decorative plywood from China, Indonesia and Vietnam.
The Commission announced its vote on August 19, 2026. The decision excludes all Softwood structural plywood.
The Commission released the following countries dumping margins and cash deposit rates respectively, China’s final dumping margin at 187.27 percent and cash deposit at 185.96 percent, Vietnam’s final dumping margin is 90.12 percent and final cash deposit is 84.95 percent, while Indonesia’ s PT Wijaya Cahaya Timber / PT Wijaya Triutama final dumping margin at 15.40 percent and final cash deposit 15.39 percent, Indonesia’s PT Sengon Indah Mas / PT Java Wood Industry final dumping margin is 23.88 percent and final cash deposit is 23.78 percent, Indonesia’s PT Mustika Buana Sejahtera final dumping margin is 84.94 percent and final cash deposit is 84.94 percent, while Indonesia’s other lumber companies’ final dumping margins are 18.10 percent and final cash deposits are 18.06 percent.
The Commerce adjusts some antidumping cash-deposit rates for subsidy offsets. Do not add AD and CVD percentages together into a single invented tariff rate.
The final countervailing duty rates for China is 88.96 percent, Indonesia’s PT Mustika Buana Sejahtera is 128.66 percent, Indonesia’s PT Sengon Indah Mas is 4.22 percent, Indonesia’s PT Wijaya Cahaya Timber Tbk. is 58.39 percent, all other Indonesian companies’ are 40.87 percent, Vietnam’s Junma Phu Tho Co., Ltd.’s is 165.39 percent, Vietnam’s Trieu Thai Son / Nhat Duy is 47.68 percent and all other Vietnam’s companies’ are 47.68 percent.
The USITC explicitly states that the affirmative final determinations concern hardwood and decorative plywood excluding all softwood structural plywood. The Commission separately terminated the final phase of the related softwood structural plywood investigations.
Commerce identifies the petitioner as the Coalition for Fair Trade in Hardwood Plywood, whose members include Columbia Forest Products, Commonwealth Plywood, Manthei Wood Products, States Industries and Timber Products Company.
Fraunhofer Finds Beetle-Damaged Spruce Suitable For Structural Timber After Two Years Standing
Germany – Fraunhofer WKI research found that bark-beetle-killed Spruce left standing for up to two years could still be processed into glued solid-wood products under the tested conditions. For OSB, particleboard and MDF, the research found a material-use window extending to at least four years of storage.
Bark-beetle-killed Spruce does not automatically lose all material value simply because it cannot be harvested immediately, according to a multi-year research project led by Fraunhofer WKI.
The project focused exclusively on Spruce killed by bark beetle and tested how storage duration affected possible use in solid-wood products and wood-based panels.
The two-year result should not be interpreted as automatic structural approval for every dead spruce log. Condition, degradation, sorting and product-specific requirements remain decisive.
Fraunhofer also warns that processing older damaged spruce creates a substantially higher share of fine particles and dust compared with fresh wood.
Damaged and dead Spruce were collected from large calamity areas in Harz National Park and Sauerland, covering different times since tree death. The researchers also tested dry-stored calamity wood of different storage durations.
The project ran from August 2022 to July 2025 and was funded by Germany’s federal agriculture and environment ministries, with FNR acting as project manager.
Tropical Timber Activity Expands In Indonesia, Brazil And Gabon In July
Indonesia, Brazil and Gabon – Timber-sector activity improved in parts of Asia, Africa and Latin America in July, with Indonesia, Brazil and Gabon recording Global Timber Index readings above the 50 percent threshold, according to the latest ITTO-supported GTI report.
Indonesia posted a GTI reading of 52.7 percent, Brazil 52.2 percent and Gabon 51.8 percent, indicating slight overall expansion compared with the previous month.
The other seven pilot countries remained below the 50 percent threshold. The Republic of the Congo was closest at 49.3 percent, followed by Ghana at 47.8 percent, Ecuador at 47.7 percent, Thailand at 47.5 percent and China at 43.0 percent. Mexico recorded 38.7 percent and Malaysia 28.8 percent.
July GTI’s readings were as follows, Indonesia at 52.7 percent, Brazil at 52.2 percent, Gabon at 51.8 percent, Republic of the Congo at 49.3 percent, Ghana at 47.8 percent, Ecuador at 47.7 percent, Thailand at 47.5 percent, China at 43.0 percent, Mexico at 38.7 percent and Malaysia at 28.8 percent.
The specialized GTI-Producers Index stood at 50.1 percent, indicating little overall change in production conditions. By contrast, the GTI Wood-based Panel Index was 37.6 percent, remaining well below the 50 percent threshold.
ITTO reported higher production volumes in Indonesia, Thailand, Gabon and Brazil during July. Brazil’s harvesting volume also increased from the previous month, while harvesting activity in Indonesia remained stable over the previous three months.
On the demand side, new orders in Indonesia and Brazil increased for a third consecutive month. Orders in Gabon and the Republic of the Congo stabilized after earlier declines.
The Global Timber Index tracks timber-sector conditions across ten pilot countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. A reading above 50 percent indicates expansion compared with the previous month, while a reading below 50 percent indicates contraction.
Canadian Wood Producer Prices Rise 3.2 Percent In July, Extending Seven-Month Climb
Canada – According the most recent data available at press time, Canadian producer prices for lumber and other wood products increased 3.2 percent month on month in July 2026, extending the wood group’s run of monthly gains to seven, while the overall Industrial Product Price Index increased 0.6 percent.
The July wood group was 7.6 percent higher than a year earlier. Statistics Canada’s June release had already recorded a 2.6 percent monthly increase for lumber and other wood products, led by a 6.1 percent increase in softwood lumber. The additional July rise therefore marks a further acceleration in the broad wood-products index.
The Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI) measures changes in the prices Canadian manufacturers receive as products leave the factory gate. It is not a spot lumber quotation and it is not expressed as CAD/m³, CAD/MBF or a delivered customer price.
The index also excludes indirect taxes such as sales taxes and tariffs, as well as transportation, wholesale and retail costs between the factory gate and the final user. Statistics Canada notes that tariffs can still affect the index indirectly if they alter input costs, supply or demand.
This means a 3.2 percent rise should be read as a change in the broad producer-price index for the product group from June to July, not as evidence that every species, grade, region or mill increased selling prices by exactly 3.2 percent.
The total IPPI rose 0.6 percent in July after falling 1.4 percent in June. By contrast, lumber and other wood products increased in both months, by 2.6 percent in June and 3.2 percent in July. The wood series therefore provides a clearer signal of recent factory-gate pricing pressure in Canadian wood manufacturing than the headline industrial index alone.
