KUCHING: The downturn for the overall prosperity of the timber harvesting and primary processing industries in several tropical countries has persisted.
Last month, the Global Timber Index (GTI) – Producers registered 37.7 per cent, and had stayed below the critical value (50%) for several consecutive months, indicating a downturn for the overall prosperity of the timber harvesting and primary processing industries in the pilot producing countries.
The pilot countries are Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Gabon, Republic of Congo (ROC), Ghana, Brazil and Mexico. In 2023, the total production of logs and sawnwood in these eight countries was 289 million cubic metres (cu m), accounting for 67.3 per cent of the 37 International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) producers’ total quantity.
In Asia, the GTIs for Malaysia and Thailand stood at 26.1 per cent and 45.2 per cent respectively.
“On the supply side, Malaysia continued to see a decline in both harvesting and production. Additionally, the inventory of main raw materials had experienced significant decline for several consecutive months.
“Malaysian Plantation and Commodities Minister (Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani) said that the country would continue to prohibit the export of raw logs, with local timber reserved exclusively for domestic processing. However, the government is open to timber imports to support local demand and ease pressure on natural forests,” said GTI-Producers Report for August 2025.
The monthly report is produced by Global Green Supply Chains Initiative (GGSC) in collaboration with ITTO.
Last month, GTI-Malaysia index dropped by 3.5 percentage point from July to 26.1 per cent, well below the critical value for many months. This indicated that the business prosperity of the superior timber enterprises represented by the GTI-Malaysia index shrank from the previous month.
“As for the twelve sub-indexes, two indexes — inventory of finished products and purchase price – were at the critical value of 50 per cent while the remaining ten indexes — harvesting, production, new orders, export orders, existing orders, purchase quantity, inventory of main raw materials, employees, delivery time, and market expectation — were all below the critical value.
“Compared to the previous month, the indexes for production, new orders, export orders, inventory of finished products, purchase quantity, employees, delivery time and market expectation increased by 0.8-17.5 percentage points; the indexes for harvesting and purchase price were unchanged from the previous month; and the indexes for both existing orders and inventory of main raw materials declined by 2.8 percentage points,” said the GTI-Malaysia Index report.
In Thailand, the GTI-Producers report said the volume of harvesting had increased for the third consecutive month in August while production volume showed decline.
On the demand side, Thailand’s domestic new orders decreased while its export market continued to show an upward trend. Meanwhile in Malaysia, both domestic and international markets remained relatively sluggish.
In Africa, the timber sector showed overall improvement in August. The GTIs for Ghana, Gabon and ROC were at 60.5 per cent, 52.6 per cent and 41.9 per cent respectively.
Ghana remained in expansion terrority for the eighth consecutive months, and Gabon’s timber sector showed signs of recovery after a long period of slowdown. The Congo, however, remained in contraction terrority.
On the production side, Ghana posted continued increases in both harvesting and production whereas Gabon saw a recovery in supply, with the volumes of harvesting and production increasing significantly compared to the previous month of July.
In contrast, the Congo experienced a contraction in harvesting and production.
“Demand-side performance also varied. Ghana sustained growth in new orders, Gabon’s expansion was driven largely by robust foreign demand — a highlight this month (August) while the Congo continued to face mild contraction in both domestic and international markets,” said the report.
In Latin America, the GTIs for Mexico and Brazil recorded 35.4 per cent and 30.5 per cent respectively, both below the critical value. On the supply side, both countries saw a significant decline in harvesting and production.
Mexico’s supply chain was particularly affected by the raining season, shifting from expansion in contraction since June.
On the demand side, market performance was sluggish in both Mexico and Brazil, particularly with exports declining significantly when US tariff policies had a noticeable impact on the Latin America timber industry.
Also, some GTI-Brazil sample enterprises reported reduced business due to US tariffs and anti-dumping measures in Europe, said the GTI-Producers report.
