128 



THE OUTLOOK FOR TIMBER IN THE UNITED STATES! 



Table 99. — Imports and exports of timber products, volume and value, 1972 



Item 



Unit of measure 



Imports ' 



Exports 1 





Volume 



Value 



Volume 



Value 



Logs: 



Softwoods.- - 



Million board feet. 

 do 



11.3 

 28.0 



Million 



dollars 

 0.7 

 3.4 



3, 049. 4 

 93.9 



Million 

 dollars 

 392. 5 



Hardwoods _____ 



42. 1 





do 





Total . -- 



39. 3 



4. 1 



3, 143. 3 



434. 5 





do 





Lumber: 



Softwoods _ -- ______ 



8, 976. 9 



445. 2 



7.9 



1, 010. 



88.8 

 .8 



1, 173. 2 



249. 7 



29. 2 



201. 9 



Hardwoods 



, do 



72. 6 



Railroad ties. _ 



do 



5. 





do 





Total ------ 



9, 430. 1 



1, 099. 5 



1, 452. 1 



279. 5 





Million square feet 



- do _ 





Veneer: 



Softwoods - - 



365. 4 

 2, 786. 



5. 8 

 63.7 



287. 4 

 204.3 



9. 2 



Hardwoods- 



12. 7 





do 





Total - ----- 



3, 151. 4 



69.4 



491. 8 



21. 9 





do 





Plywood: 



Softwoods. 



5 9 

 6, 427! 3 



. 5 

 336.9 



220.4 

 30.7 



31. 5 



Hardwoods - • 



... do . 



5. 3 





do - 





Total.. -.- -- 



6, 433. 2 



337.3 



251. 1 



36. 9 





Thousand cords 





Pulpwood: 

 Round 



307 

 699 



10. 

 10.4 



142 

 1,825 



3. 3 



Chips _ _ 



do _ 



57. 1 





-_ _ do 





Total --. 



1, 005 



20. 4 



1,966 



60.4 





Thousand tons 





Woodpulp - 



3,728 



494. 2 



2,253 



357. 7 





do - 





Paper and board: 



Newsprint _ _ 



7, 101 



893 



39 



1, 056. 1 



125. 6 



32.8 



145 



2,856 



167 



20.4 



Other paper and board ___ 

 Paper and board products- 



do 



do 



do 



570.6 

 135.4 



Total 



8,033 



1, 214. 6 



3, 168 



726.4 





do 





Other wood products 2 





367.2 





120. 4 











Total, all timber products . 





3, 606. 8 





2, 037. 8 













1 Data may not add to totals because of rounding. 



2 Includes poles and piling, fuelwood, particleboard, 

 wood charcoal, cork, wastepaper, wood containers, wood 

 doors, and other miscellaneous products. Does not include 

 wood furniture nor printed materials. 



Sources: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the 

 Census. U.S. imports, commodity by country, December 1972. 

 FT 135; and U.S. exports, commodity by country, December 

 1972. FT 410. Supt. of Documents, U.S. Government 

 Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 



The recent rise in exports of timber products 

 from the United States is attributed to: 



• rapid growth in world timber demands, 

 particularly in Japan and Western Europe, 



• availability of high-quality kraft pulp and 

 liner board from the southern United States, 

 and high-grade lumber, softwood logs, and 

 chips from the Pacific Northwest, 



• a special situation in Alaska favoring pulp 

 and lumber exports to Japan. 



TRENDS IN U.S. NET IMPORTS OF TIMBER 

 PRODUCTS 



During the first five decades of this century the 

 United States gradually changed from a net 

 exporting country to a net importer (fig. 48). By 

 1950, the United States was dependent on foreign 

 sources for about a tenth of all timber products 

 consumed. 



Between 1950 and 1970, net imports remained 



