New MOU to Increase Lumber Shipments to China
Prince George, B.C. – The Province of B.C has signed a Memorandum Of Understanding with China's Zhejiang province that is expected to be the first step towards increasing lumber shipments to China.
Under the five year MOU, the two governments agree to promote the use of environmentally friendly low-carbon, wood-frame construction, develop wood-frame construction codes and standards for application in China. There will also be a sharing of knowledge in technical aspects and experience in wood construction.
B.C. will also increase co-operation with Zhejiang on wood-frame construction research, with a specific focus on local construction needs in Zhejiang province, including government-funded public building projects and home renovations.
Minister of Forests, Steve Thomson, says Zheijiang wants to use wood to build its tourism resorts and low density housing. That province has a high eco-tourism sector and carbon friendly wood construction is viewed as in keeping with that sector.
In the first half of this year, B.C. has exported 3.67 million cubic meters of lumber valued at $675 million dollars to China and Hong Kong. That’s up from the first half of last year when 3.5 million cubic meters of lumber valued at $635 million had been exported.
Comments
Good deal we send quality wood , in return we get back what? Very little that last longer than three months maybe!!
And a few spies for good measure.
What about BC jobs, and I can’t figure it out, how can it be easier to ship raw logs than processed wood. Oh I know it is to hell with job creation in BC as long as those with the big cheque books continue to give to the Liberal Party.
I see no where that it says this is raw logs being shipped. Seems to me that finished lumber shipped to a country that is trying to change its’ way of building and using BC lumber and expertise is a good thing for BC.
BC has been shipping finished lumber to China for over 20 years. Nothing new here folks, move along.
EVERY country will try to run what is called a ‘favourable’ Balance of Trade. Where the value of what is exported exceeds the value of what is imported, and international credits are obtained for the difference.
This is in no ways ‘trade’ ~ as in the exchange of the relative surpluses of one country for the alternate relative surpluses of another. It is entirely a ‘money game’.
These international credits are a DEBT-FREE injection of new credit into the economy of the country receiving them, without which, in any modern industrial country, there would be a chronic shortage of consumer purchasing power, (which there is anyways, only it would be a whole lot worse). One which could only be made up by even more unrepayable DEBT (in its totality) being incurred.
Actual international ‘trade’ is only trade if it is akin to barter. And in such an instance makes perfect sense in that it allows the diversification of consumption in each country beyond what could be produced in any one country alone.
It does not make sense as a ‘money game’, since in this game all will ultimately be losers.
China still gets more lumber and logs from Russia . Chrisy’s pipeline dreams are also questionable at best as Russia is building two pipelines to china , one for Natgas ( $400 billion) one for crude oil ($173 billion ) . Many Chinese cities next year will cease burning coal permently . They are also going solar in very big way .
They do have an advantage in countries with one person making the decisions, we have too many layers to go through to capitalize on emerging markets. The Chinese will burn coal for another hundred years or more, don’t kid yourself.
Chinese putting a new coal power plant on line basically one a week.
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