European market for okoume plywood still very slow
Despite the consistency in supply, Europe’s market for okoume plywood continues to suffer from weak demand. There were early signs of improving construction and economic activity in the first half of 2014 in the two key markets for this product – France and the Netherlands.
However, activity and market confidence weakened again in the second half of the year. Since the change in Gabon’s GSP status on 1 January 2014, plywood imported into the EU from Gabon has attracted a 7% duty.
However manufacturers of okoume plywood in Europe have been granted an exemption and pay no duty on okoume veneer imported from Gabon. Even with this advantage, there is little sign of an upturn in market demand for European produced okoume plywood.
Producers continue to report very low profitability but are struggling to push through price increases in the current market. The simple fact is that Europe’s few remaining tropical hardwood plywood manufacturers are uncompetitive relative to overseas suppliers.