KUCHING: Malaysia has maintained its lead over closest rival Indonesia in the exports of plywood to Japan in the JanuarySeptember 2025 period (9m2025).
During the period under review, Malaysia shipped 455,100 cubic metres (cu m) of plywood to Japan, ahead of Indonesia’s 442,500 cu m, according to Japan’s Finance Ministry data quoted by International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) Tropical Timber Market Report (November 1-15, 2025). In September, Japan imported 54,200 cu m from Malaysia and 53,600 cu m from Indonesia.
In 9m2024, Malaysia also beat Indonesia as the largest plywood supplier to their traditional Japanese market.
The ministry’s official figures stated that Japan sourced 449,300 cu m from Malaysia and 439,800 cu m from Indonesia.
Vietnam is the third largest plywood supplier to Japan, with shipment of 135,100 cu m in 9m2025, followed by China’s 79,300 cu m during the same period.
“As in previous months, Indonesia and Malaysia were the top suppliers of plywood to Japan in September (2025) and the combined volume of shipments accounted for over 80 per cent of Japan’s plywood imports, the other top shippers being Vietnam and China.
“September 2025 imports volumes were 18 per cent higher than in August 2024 but came in at around the same level as in September 2024.
The volume of September 2025 imports from Malaysia and Indonesia rose as they did from the other main shippers, Vietnam and China,” said the ITTO report.
In September, the top volume of plywood imports was of HS441210-39 category at 131,017 cu m (August 110,998 cu m). Meanwhile, Japan reported a sharp drop in the value of assembled wooden flooring (HS44187179) imported in September after three months of steady increases.
The sharp correction saw the import value slumped by 30 per cent to about RM7.87 million from the previous month of August. But year-onyear, the September import value was flat. “Of the various categories of assembled flooring imports, 71 per cent was of HS441875 with China and Vietnam being the top shippers. For the other categories, HS441879 accounted for 13 per cent of September imports, followed by HS441873 (11%) and HS441874 (5%). “Of HS441873 imports, all originated in China and shippers in China accounted for over 60 per cent of HS441874 arrivals in September while the other suppliers being Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand,” added the report. Malaysia was the fourth largest supplier of HS441875 assembled wooden flooring to Japan in September.
