Why Japan should start exporting wood

A new report says Japan’s timber exports could be on track to exceed 1.6 trillion yen ($100.8 billion) in 2018, a jump of 4.2 percent from the year before.

Wooden imports account for more than half of Japan’s trade, accounting for 10.9 percent of the nation’s GDP, the report from the Japanese government’s forestry division says.

Woods are also an important part of Japan the country’s economy, accounting in 2017 for 14.4 percent of total output.

The government plans to export 3 billion tons of wood by 2020.

The report says exports of wood to Germany could be more than 20 percent of its total output in 2020, and imports could be as high as 60 percent.

The number of woodworkers has increased by nearly 20 percent since the 2020s, according to the report.