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Market Report Africa - Middle East - South Asia - Oceania November/December 2017 www.americanhardwood.org Above: American tulipwood acoustic wall panelling in Sydney, Australia (see inside for details).

Market Report - Africa - Middle East - South America ......Market Report Africa - Middle East - South Asia - Oceania November/December 2017 Above: American tulipwood acoustic wall

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Page 1: Market Report - Africa - Middle East - South America ......Market Report Africa - Middle East - South Asia - Oceania November/December 2017 Above: American tulipwood acoustic wall

Market ReportAfrica - Middle East - South Asia - Oceania

November/December 2017

www.americanhardwood.org

Above: American tulipwood acoustic wall panelling inSydney, Australia (see inside for details).

Page 2: Market Report - Africa - Middle East - South America ......Market Report Africa - Middle East - South Asia - Oceania November/December 2017 Above: American tulipwood acoustic wall

www.americanhardwood.orgPage 1

In late November, AHEC’s ‘Seed to Seat’collaborative design project wasunveiled for the second time in a galleryincentralCapeTown.Givenanopenbriefandasked to design ‘something to sit on’,seven South African designers createdseven unique pieces using Americantulipwood, red oak, soft maple andcherry, which are less well-knownAmerican hardwood species in SouthAfrica. The project in South Africa is thethird edition of ‘Seed to Seat’, which wasinitially launched in Australia in 2016 andin Dubai in early 2017.

The seven seats, which were designedand made by some of the mostprominent and exciting designers basedin South Africa, were put on show in acreative display that highlighted thesustainable credentials of the Americanhardwood resource. The designersinvolved with the project were AndrewDominic (Andrew Dominic Furniture),James Mudge (James Mudge FurnitureStudio), Laurie Wiid van Heerden (WiidDesign), Christoph Karl (GuidelineManufacturing), Jacques Cronje(minima), David Krynauw (DavidKrynauw) and Adriaan Hugo (Dokterand Misses).

Aiming to demonstrate that sustainabilitycanhavesubstance,AHECalsodevelopedfull environmental profiles for each of thefinished pieces using its ground-breakingLife Cycle Assessment (LCA) research.

The creatively displayed exhibition, whichran from 20November until 20 DecemberatYoundbloodGallery inBreeStreet, CapeTown, was officially opened on theevening of 23November. AHEC’s RegionalDirector, RodWiles, gave a short welcomeand introduction to the project at theevent, which was attended by around 80designers and manufacturers from theCape Town area, as well as timber tradeand design media.

On 7 December, the gallery was open lateas part of Cape Town's monthly 'First-Thursdays' city-wide design-focusedevent. Around 1,500 design professionals,artists and consumers came through thegallery and saw the 'Seed to Seat'exhibition.

AHEC is now working on initial plans for anew collaborative design project in 2018and, once again, aiming for exhibition at100% Design South Africa inJohannesburg in August.

'Seed to Seat' South AfricaRelaunched in Cape Town

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The Cairo Woodshow/Egywoodex ranfrom 8-11 December at the CairoInternational Convention Centre. It wasan amalgamation of two wood shows,which were due to take place in new andseparate venues one after the other.When the venues were not ready in time,the decision was made to combine thetwo events. The Cairo Woodshow wasrun back in 2011 and 2012 by the sameorganisers as the Dubai Woodshow, butstopped due to the unstable political andeconomic situation in Egypt, whileEgywoodex was a completely newconcept, run by a Turkish fair organizer.

The joint show was well-attended by afocused audience of timber importersand end users – mainly furnituremanufacturers. In terms of exhibitors, allthe major timber importer/distributorswere present, as well as a host of woodprocessing machinery manufacturersand woodworking related productsuppliers.

AHEC's small generic information standwas used as a platform to answertechnical questions on Americanhardwoods, as well as to find sources ofsupply. Over the course of the show,around 1,000 AHEC technicalpublications were distributed to visitorsand more than half of these were inArabic, which is a necessity in Egypt.

Two of AHEC’smember companieswerealso at the show in their own right andthey reported that the event was a goodcontact-building exercise and allowedthem to meet many companies thatwere new to them in the market.

During the show, NHLA Chief Inspector,Dana Spessert was able to take part inthe conferenceprogrammeandhegavea 45 minute presentation introducingAmerican hardwoods and the NHLAgrading rules for hardwood lumber.AHEC’s Executive Director, Mike Snow,was also present at the show, as well asAHEC’s Regional Director, Rod Wiles.

Egypt has, and continues to be, animportant market for both Americanhardwood lumber and veneers.Consumption of US hardwoodsdecreased after the Arab Spring, but thishas recovered toa certain extent and thesigns are promising for a stronger

recovery in the future and once thepolitical and economic climates stabilisemore completely.

In the January to September period of2017, 5,961 cubic metres of US hardwoodlumber were shipped to Egypt, marking a20 per cent decrease on the same periodin the previous year. While this paints arather inconsistent picture with the onegiven by on-the-ground market contacts,it is anticipated that Egyptian demand forUS hardwoods will pick up in 2018. At thesame time, direct exports of Americanhardwood veneers to themarket reachedUSD 4.30 million, marking a 44 per centdecrease on the same period in 2016. Thisdecrease is partly due to increasedbuyingof US hardwood veneers from othersupplying countries, as well as toincreased local production of veneersfrom imported American hardwood logs.Egypt's imports of US hardwood logs roseby 24 per cent during the first ninemonths

of last year, to 2,429 cubic metres.

The Egyptian furniture industry is largeand increasingly organized andmechanized and the need for consistentsupplies of quality raw materials isgrowing. There is a lot of interest in UShardwoodsandthis ispartlybeingdrivenby increasing exports of Egyptian-madefurniture and the demands of buyersoverseas. However, knowledge andunderstanding of US hardwoods aregenerally low and restricted to just a fewkey species, such as the oaks, ash andwalnut.

AHEC intends to capitalize on thisopportunity in the coming months andyearsand to revisit themarketwith sometechnical seminars aimed, primarily, atthe furniture sector, which is located inCairo, Alexandria and Damietta.

AHEC Participates in CairoWoodshow

NHLA ChiefInspector, DanaSpessert, speaks onNorth Americanhardwood lumbergrading at the CairoWoodshow 2017conference series.

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Special Report:India & New Opportunities for American Hardwoods

Raw Material CrisisAs has been previously reported, thelarge-scale Indian wooden furniture andhandicrafts sector is currently facing araw material crisis, owing to the CITESlisting of one of its key local hardwoodspecies - sheesham (Dalbergia sissoo) -in January 2017. Sheesham, along withlocally-sourced mango and acacia areused in massive volumes in theproduction of rustic-style furniture,kitchenware and handicrafts, which areprimarily aimed at export markets suchas the United States and Europe.

In addition to the CITES listing ofsheesham, access to both mango andacacia is also becoming more restrictedand lumber prices are rising, while thequality of material is deteriorating.

The primary concern of the sector now isto be able to continue to supply itscustomers, such as West Elm, PotteryBarn and Home Depot etc. with whatthey need. In order to do this, they willneed to turn to alternative wood species.

Genuine OpportunityWith price being one of the key decidingfactors in selecting alternative woodspecies, while colour variation anddensity are less important, AHEC hasbeen instrumental in proposing No. 1 &No. 2 Common tulipwood as a viablepossibility.

At the end of October 2017, a full 40 footcontainer of No.1 & No.2 Commontulipwood lumber was received by AHEC'sIndia Representative in Mumbai. Thelumber and the cost of shipping was verygenerously donated by J. M. JonesLumber Company, Inc. In November, thelumber was split in to parcels and sent tojustover40manufacturersaround India inorder for them to test its properties andworkability. 30 or so of thesemanufacturers were based in the woodenfurniture and handicraft epicentres ofJodhpur and Jaipur in Rajasthan. Trialsare currently ongoing, but there hasalready been positive feedback fromsome of the manufacturers, in addition tocommercial enquiries (trade leads) formore tulipwood to be supplied.

In late February, the key furniture andhandicraft fairwill beheld inNewDelhi andit is expected that some of themanufacturers will be taking new designsand productsmade from tulipwood to thefair, in order for their overseas buyers tosee and approve them.

In addition to the wooden furniture andhandicraft manufacturers in Rajasthan,the tulipwood lumber was also sent toindividual furniture manufacturers in anumber of cities. Again, feedback on thelumber from some of these has alreadybeen positive. Based upon conversationswith a number of these companies, AHEC

is confident that genuine orders fortulipwood lumber will be generated, aswell as orders for other species,especially in the Common grades.

However, it is notonlyAHEC in the race topromote alternative wood species tothesemanufacturers and the Canadianshave already had some success withyellow cedar.

Call to ActionWhile the vision of India finally openingup to American hardwoods is veryenticing, it will not be achieved withoutaction fromAHEC'smember companies.

Somewhat understandably, TradeLeads from Indian importers have oftenbeen ignored over the past few yearsand the pitfalls of shipping Americanhardwoods to India have been welldocumented. However, things arechanging and there is now genuineinterest in buying KD Americanhardwood lumber from a growingnumber of manufacturers. A handfull ofcompanies have imported and workedsuccessfully with kiln dried Americanhardwood lumber during the last twelvemonths or so and anecdotal evidencesuggests that more will follow. Inaddition, the process of shipping UShardwood lumber to India has nowbecome much simpler. Some usefulguidance is provided overleaf.

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GUIDANCE FOR EXPORTING AMERICAN HARDWOOD LUMBER TO INDIA

InvoiceTheexportermustmention the importer’s ImportExportNo. (IEC)&GoodsandServiceTaxNo. (GST).Thevalueshouldbementionedin USD per cubic meter and not just in USD per thousand board feet.

Import PermitAs per the official notification dated 27 July 2016, the Government of India has stopped issuing Import Permits for wood speciesunder schedules6&7of thePlantQuarantineActOrder. In this case, the importpermitnumber isno longer required tobementionedin the Phytosanitary Certificate under the ‘Additional Declaration’ heading.

Bill of LadingIt is crucial toprovide 14detention freedays,as it takesat least 10-12days toclearashipmentat Indianports.Thenumberofdetentionfree days should be clearly mentioned in the Bill of Lading.

Phytosanitary CertificateThe exporter must endorse the Kiln Drying treatment details on the Phytosanitary Certificate for US hardwood lumber as requiredby the Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine & Storage, India.

- TreatmentDate (Column 1):This shouldbebefore thedateof inspectionof theKilnDryingprocess, issuedateof thePhytosanitaryCertificate and Bill of Lading date.

- Treatment (Column 2): Kiln Dried.

- Chemical (active ingredient) (Column 3): Can be left blank as no chemical is used during Kiln Drying.

- Duration & Temperature (Column 4): 30 minutes at 56 C or above.

- Concentration (Column 5): Can be left blank as no chemical is used during Kiln Drying.

- Additional Information (Column 6): Duration and temperature: 56 C and above for 30 minutes (core temperature of wood)

Note that simply attaching the Kiln Drying certificate to the Phytosanitary Certificate without endorsing the treatment details inColumns 1 to 6 as above,will not be accepted by Indian Customs andwill lead to heavy penalties for the importer at the destinationport.

USDA PCIT & PExDThe USDA Phytosanitary Certificate Issuance & Tracking System (PCIT) and the Phytosanitary Export Database (PExD) containedtherein are fully updated for Indiaand shouldbe checkedcarefully for additional requirements for eachUShardwoodspecies beingshipped.

Tulipwood Success StoryAmerican tulipwood has already beenused successfully by some Indianmanufacturers. In one case and onAHEC's recommendation, a 40 footcontainer of KD tulipwood lumber wasimported by a small-sized customfurniture and joinery manufacturer inMumbai. Someof the lumberwasused tocomplete all the wooden joinery andfurniture in a new, high end apartment inMumbai (see images here and onpreviouspage).Bothnatural finishesandstains were used and the natural colourvariation in the lumber was fullyembraced upon the insistence of theclient.

AHEC visited the manufacturer inNovember and learned that they wereextremely happywith both the quality of

the material and its performance,but most significantly, by itsappearance. They also reportedthat their regular clients were veryexcited by the new look and theiraim now is to shift all their previousproduction in mango to tulipwood.

A positive endorsement such asthis from a respected Indianmanufacturer is likely to persuadeothers to try tulipwood and,potentially, other Americanhardwood species in the nearfuture.

AHEC is currently putting togethera case study for the Indian mediaon this particular project, which willbecirculated in thecomingmonths.

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AHEC EventsIndiawoodBangalore, 8-12 March

AHECwill be takingpart in the Indiawoodshow in Bangalore this March. The showis the largestwood industryevent in Indiaand it takesplaceevery twoyears, as thesister showof the smallerDelhiwoodandMumbaiwood shows.

AHEC has secured a 96 square metrespace and will construct a brandedAmerican Hardwood Pavilion. There willbe space for eight individual companiestoeach takea3mx3mbooth,whileAHECwill also have a generic informationspace. All eight of the individual spaceshave been reserved by AHEC Membercompanies.

This will be the first time AHEC hasparticipated in a show in India with apavilion since 2012. AHEC firmly believesthat the timing is right for Americanhardwoods in India and that genuineopportunities for business now exist. It isanticipated that therewill beasignificantamount of interest from visitors in theAmerican Hardwood Pavilion and thattheUScompanies takingpart in theshowwill find it to be very worthwhile.

Dubai WoodshowDubai, 12-14 March

AHECwill also be takingpart in theDubaiWoodshow thisMarch and this will be forthe 13th consecutive year. Occupying 168square metres and providing space forseventeen 3m x 3m individual booths,AHEC will be building an AmericanHardwood Pavilion again this year. Todate, sixteen of the seventeen boothshave been reserved by AHEC Membercompanies.

Unfortunately, this year, the showoverlaps with Indiawood. However, forthose affected,missing the last two daysof the five-day show in Bangalore toattend this extremely important event inDubai will not be toomuch of an issue. Asin previous years, the Dubai Woodshowis expected to attract visitors from allover the Middle East and Africa, as wellas from Pakistan.

The American HardwoodPavilion at Indiawood 2012,Bangalore

The American HardwoodPavilion at the DubaiWoodshow 2017

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PR Highlights

USD 1.00 =Euro (EUR)Bahraini Dinar (BHD)*Egyptian Pound (EGP)Israeli New Shekel (ILS)Jordanian Dinar (JOD)*Kuwaiti Dinar (KWD)Lebanese Pound (LBP)*Moroccan Dirham (MAD)Omani Rial (OMR)*Pakistani Rupee (PKR)Qatari Rial (QAR)*Saudi Riyal (SAR)*Turkish Lira (TRY)UAE Dirham (AED)*South African Rand (ZAR)Bangladeshi Taka (BDT)Indian Rupee (INR)Sri Lanka Rupee (LKR)Australian Dollar (AUD)

New Zealand Dollar

30 Nov 20170.840.3717.703.500.710.301,503.419.400.38105.043.653.753.963.6713.6683.3464.30152.641.321.45

31 Dec 20170.830.3817.753.470.710.301,505.099.330.38110.233.613.753.783.6712.3682.4763.71152.921.281.41

Exchange Rates Regional Events *Bold denotes AHEC event or AHECparticipation

AHEC Africa - Middle East - South Asia - Oceania

[email protected]

Oceania | Timber TraderNews | December 2017

One page print feature onBen Percy's Americantulipwood acoustic panelling

South Africa | VISI | 28November 2017

Online story on WorldArchitecture Festival winnersand The Smile

South Africa |BizCommunity | 18November 2017

Online story on AHEC'sSeed to Seat project

India | Wood News | October2017

Two page print feature onAHEC's Seed to Seat projectin South Africa

16-18 Feb Woodtech Egypt Cairo, Egypt

5-8 Mar Wood Tech & Design Expo(as part of Big 5 Saudi)

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

8-12 Mar Indiawood Bangalore, India

12-14 Mar Dubai Woodshow Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Source: OANDA FX Converter*denotes currency pegged to USD

14-16 Jun Denfair Melbourne, Australia

26-29 Mar INDEX Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

8-12 Aug 100% Design South Africa Johannesburg, South Africa

3-6 May Index India Mumbai, India

16-18 Aug Denfair Sydney, Australia