Malaysian timber exporters eye thriving PHL construction industry
Malaysian timber exporters eye thriving PHL construction industry
Malaysian timber producers are looking at the Philippines as a new export market amid strong growth in domestic construction activity. NyaeeAyup, Malaysia Trade Office-Manila commissioner, said several companies have recently asked the assistance of her office to look for possible buyers of their lumber products.
“We help Malaysian timber exporters who want to expand outside their market. We see construction everywhere (in the Philippines), especially in Mindanao, so there is need for quality timber products,” saidAyup, who visited the city together with several Malaysian business leaders and officials during the business leaders meeting of the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asean Growth Area and the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle late last month.
In a statement, Loh Pau Seen, Malaysian Timber Council trade promotion and marketing executive, said the council sees the Philippines as a good market for Malaysian timber products, particularly for sawn timber like red Meranti and mixed light hardwood.
In the first quarter, new construction projects based on approved building permits stood at more than 29 000, 21 percent higher than a year earlier, according to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The official said the Philippine market is expected to become a mature market for Malaysia next year when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations starts implementing measures to integrate regional economies.
“The Filipino timber market is familiar with Malaysian timber species. Filipino importers and end-users recognised Malaysia’s strong capacity to supply timber products sufficiently,” Seen said.
He added that Filipino importers are already “buying big volumes” of timber mainly from Sarawak, but “Peninsular Malaysia has that strength to offer a wide range of timber species that might interest Filipino importers seeking alternative sources of supply other than their existing suppliers.”
Sarawak is one of the Malaysian states on Borneo, which lies next to Mindanao.
Members of the timber council, along with the Timbers Exporters’ Association of Malaysia and the Malaysian Wood Industries Association, visited Manila about two months ago for a market assessment.
“The main objective of the visit was to develop close bilateral business relationships between Filipino timber trade associations” and themselves, Seen added.
Philippine supply is constrained by national and local logging bans.
Louis N Rabat, former head of the Davao Industry Cluster Capacity Enhancement Project wood industry cluster, told BusinessWorld his group has been looking for alternative sources of raw materials to sustain their operations.
Rabat, elected last year as provincial board member of Davao Oriental, said stricter rules on wood imports are another issue that the industry is facing.
Source: www.bworldonline.com