Daniel Pye

In the first nine months of 2015, exports of Cambodian rosewood to China – the Kingdom’s largest market for the protected species – have declined by as much as 95 per cent compared with the same period last year, data released by NGO Forest Trends show.

China has registered a major drop in rosewood imports from Mekong region countries in 2015 following years of speculation on high-value hardwood species, a Communist Party anti-corruption drive and a trend towards less expensive softwood furniture, according to the forest monitor’s recent report, titled China’s Hongmu Consumption Boom.

By contrast, African countries such as Mali, Gambia and Cameroon registered increased rosewood exports to China, which has seen a boom since 2010 in the production of faux antique rosewood furniture known as hongmu – a term which also refers to the high-value hardwood species themselves.

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Good, now maybe the illegal loggers who destroy the forests for their own selfish gain will have to do something else . Shame about the legal industry .