The Government Labour Government is taking a hard line on controversial deals done by Timberlands West Coast which were said to be models of sustainable native logging. Fletcher Challenge Paper has sold a eucalypt resource it had been building up, but has supply agreements. Rotorua-based forest management company, PF Olsen Ltd, has opened up shop as an application service provider, providing the base computer network for small to medium sized companies. The trade in Argentine forest products continues to climb, with Mercosur being the main partner. Visitors from a number of countries have been reviewing the Argentine's forestry prospects.
Chilean interests continue to investment in the development of forestry in Argentina.
Added value exports from Chile have continued to grow, although some sectors suffered following the Asian economic crisis. Masisa, Latin America's leading panel and board manufacturer, has reported a positive result for the year ended 30 September 1999. This is in spite of a slump in some prices for products sold in the US, and the knowledge that a hangover generally follows the party. The Southern Hemisphere Pine Price Index is the average of all prices for pine lumber across the main forestry countries of the South. Available to subscribers.