The acceleration rate is higher than the 1.5% increase recorded at the end of the previous financial year, driven by the firmness of global raw wood prices. Logs show a 23.5% increase in quarter-on-quarter terms, outpacing the sawn timber segment, which saw a limited increase of 12.2%.

The economic upturn is unfolding in a context of structural decline in volumes of unprocessed wood shipped to Asian and European markets. Operators are anticipating the implementation of sub-regional regulations that will prohibit the sale of logs internationally by 2028. Industrial adjustment is visible in Cameroon, where mid-term development planning statistics reveal that the share of raw wood in the overall trade balance fell from 8% in 2019 to just 4% in 2023. The decline in raw wood exports is evidence of the restructuring of national industries towards primary and secondary local processing.

The tightening of fiscal policies on unprocessed raw materials is driving forest operators in the Congo Basin to densify the regional industrial tool. The integration of the Democratic Republic of Congo into the trade restriction schedule reinforces the overall economic transition for the retention of added value on the continent. The temporary maintenance of high export revenues, induced by the price effect on the log market, provides a financial boost to the public budgets of Central Africa. The generated capital allows for the amortization of the costs necessary for the modernization of sawmills before the deadline for the absolute customs ban.


BCN

Tags: bois exportation cémac afrique centrale économie industrie commerce réglementation développement