Lack of Foreign Inputs Puts Argentina’s Timber Industry at Risk of Closure

Restrictions imposed on purchases made abroad by Argentine President Albert Fernández’s administration, in order to preserve the Central Bank’s reserves in foreign currency, has the Argentine Chamber of the Wood Industry (CAIMA) warning that local producers may soon be forced to halt all activity due to the lack of imported inputs.

The new import system (SIRA) only allows the entry of products deemed “indispensable,” such as medical and security supplies and few others. Forestry was not included in that category. Therefore, the lack of inputs jeopardizes the manufacturing of everyday products used for personal hygiene, including such items as diapers, toilet paper, tissue-paper, and towels. In addition, items used for packaging, furniture, and others are part of the restrictions.

Arauco Argentina, the largest forestry-industrial company in the country, which directly employs over 4,000 people in its 7 plants, is one of the companies on alert. So are board manufacturers who are also on the brink of full paralysis, affecting up to 2,000 small and medium-sized companies, which represents some 60,000 jobs.