A mix of higher volumes and better pulp prices explained the result. China captured 36.5% of shipments.

Forestry exports increased by 4.9% year-on-year during the first half of 2024, reaching a total of US$ 2,906 million, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture's Forestry Institute (Infor).

According to Infor, shipments in June reached US$ 457.2 million, an increase of 16.8% over the same month of 2023. In this fiscal year, the highest amount of exports was recorded in January, with a total of US$ 539.1 million.

"The figures are positive for the end of the semester, but they also show a significant increase if we compare June with the same month of the previous year," said the Minister of Agriculture, Esteban Valenzuela.

The executive director of Infor, Sandra Gacitúa, explained that "the result is fundamentally due to the increase in the volumes shipped, due to the fact that the average export prices for the period January-June 2024 show year-on-year decreases in 12 of the 15 main exported products".

However, he pointed out that "international pulp prices, both long and short fibre, have experienced recent increases in May and June, mainly due to the effects of various supply-side events". He mentioned "the floods in Brazil, the explosion at the Finnish mill in Kemi, capacity closures in North America, port disruptions in Finland and Baltimore and problems in the Panama and Suez canals".

Source: elmercurio.com