Exchange trading of timber industry products with China launched in Russia
The first export deal for timber products to China took place at the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange. The timber processing company Rusforest Magistralny from the Irkutsk Region (under the management of the LesResurs Group of Companies) sold a pilot batch of 3.8 thousand m3 of lumber. The products will be delivered by rail by a Russian container train to the Taicang station in China. Three Chinese companies took part in the trades.
The export is organized through the OTP RZD mechanism, which was previously used only for domestic transportation. The exchange has been developing this project since 2024, considering it as a basis for entering Asian markets.
International timber trade is designated by the exchange as one of the priority areas. After the export mechanisms have been worked out, it is planned to expand the list of goods that will be offered to foreign participants in the trades.
In January - June 2025, more than 2 million m3 of timber were sold at the SPIMEX for a total of over 3.9 billion rubles. In addition to Russian companies, participants from Kazakhstan also acted as buyers. In the second quarter, the volume of trades with delivery abroad amounted to almost 6 thousand m3, which is 44% more than last year.
