(AVAILABILITY OF WORLD TIMBER RESOURCES 



129 



U.S. timber import - export balances 



1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 



Figure 48 



at about 1.3 billion cubic feet a year, but in 1972 

 net imports reached a new peak of 1.6 billion 

 cubic feet (Append. IV, table 11). This repre- 

 sented about 11 percent of the timber products 

 consumed in the United States. 



The balance of trade in timber products 

 measured in dollars has been very similar to bal- 

 ances of physical volumes (table 99). In most 

 recent years values of imports exceeded values of 

 exports by about $1 billion a year. 



Lumber. — Net imports of lumber amounted 

 to 8 billion board feet in 1972, or 1.2 billion 

 cubic feet roundwood equivalent. This repre- 

 sented 17 percent of the lumber consumed in 

 the United States — a figure materially above 

 1950 when net imports accounted for only 7 

 percent of U.S. lumber use. 



Pulp products. — Net imports of pulp products 

 in 1972 totaled about 0.6 billion cubic feet, 

 roundwood equivalent — about a third below the 

 early 1950's. Net imports as a proportion of 

 U.S. consumption of pulp products also showed 

 a sharp decline from 37 percent of total con- 

 sumption in 1950 to 15 percent in 1972. 



Plywood and veneer. — Net imports of plywood 

 and veneer in 1972 amounted to 0.2 billion cubic 

 feet, roundwood equivalent — or 16 percent of 

 total U.S. plywood and veneer consumption. 

 Imports accounted for about 62 percent of the 

 hardwood plywood and veneer consumed, but 

 only a negligible part of softwood plywood con- 

 sumption. 



Logs. — In the early 1950's there was a small 

 net import of logs, but this changed rapidly in the 

 1960's to a net export volume of about 0.5 billion 

 cubic feet in 1972 — a volume equal to 4 percent 

 of U.S. roundwood production. 



Future trends in imports and exports of timber 

 products will largely depend on the economic 

 availability of timber in the major forested regions 



of the world, and on the timber demand-supply- 

 price situation in the major consuming areas. 

 The timber situation in Canada, the predominant 

 source of U.S. imports, and to a lesser extent 

 in the tropical hardwood areas, is of primary 

 importance for timber supplies. Export markets 

 in western Europe and Japan are of particular 

 significance to U.S. exporters. 



WORLD TIMBER DEMANDS 



Consumption of industrial timber products has 

 been growing rapidly in all parts of the world, 

 with a rise of some 70 percent between 1950 and 

 1969. Projections prepared by the Food and 

 Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 

 and other organizations point to substantial 

 increases in demands in the decades ahead. 2 



The United States, Europe, and Japan consume 

 over half of all the industrial wood produced in the 

 world, and are dependent on other regions for a 

 significant part of this supply (table 100). The 

 studies referred to above indicate that this 

 dependency on imports is likely to increase. 



77ie Situation in Europe 



In 1970 an estimated 11.9 billion cubic feet of 

 industrial wood — about a quarter of world pro- 

 duction — was consumed in Europe, excluding the 

 Soviet Union. About two-thirds of this volume 

 was used in the European Economic Community 

 (the Common Market), the British Isles, and 

 northern Europe. Another fifth was consumed in 

 eastern Europe, with the remaining volume about 

 equally divided between central and southern 

 Europe. 



2 Examples of relevant studies include: 



Algvere, Karl Viktor. Forest economy in the USSR. 

 Studia Forestalia Suecica, No. 39, Royal College of 

 Forestry, Stockholm, Sweden. 1966. 



Food and Agriculture Organization of the United 

 Nations. Wood: World trends and prospects. FFHC 

 Basic Study 16, 131 p. Rome. 1967. 



Outlook for pulp and paper consumption, pro- 

 duction and trade to 1985. Second Consultation on World 

 Pulp and Paper Demand, Supply and Trade. Rome. 1971. 



and United Nations Economic Commission for 



Europe. European timber trends and prospects, 1950- 

 1980, an interim review. 2 V. (182 p. and 139 p.) Geneva. 

 1969. 



Japan Lumber Journal, Inc. Timber demand forecast for 

 1975. Japan Lumber J. 10(9) :1, 4. May 31, 1969. 



Solecki, J. S. Russia-China-Japan, economic growth, 

 resources and forest industries. British Columbia Univ. 

 1967. 



Takeuchi, Kenji. The market potential for tropical 

 hardwood with emphasis on the Asia Pacific region. 

 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, 

 Office Rpt. September 1971. 



United Nations Centre for Housing, Building and 

 Planning. Housing needs, trends and prospects. Unasylva 

 Vol. 25(2-3-4), nos. 101-102-103, p. 7-25. 1971. 



United Nations Economic and Social Council, Economic 

 Commission for Europe Timber Committee. TIM/Working 

 Paper No. 173/Add. 1, 19 p. July 12, 1972. 



