KUCHING: Ta Ann Holdings Bhd
, which exports nearly all of its plywood to Japan annually, has secured a new market for its panel products in the Middle East.
According to Ta Ann, the group’s strategic expansion into the Middle East, with maiden shipments early this year, has broadened its customer base and strengthened its market position.
“This geographical diversification enhances resilience against regional demand fluctuations and is expected to support sales momentum, subject to prevailing global economic conditions.
“ Notwithstanding this, as exports constitute the primary revenue driver for timber products, any appreciation of the ringgit (against the US dollar) may impact the group’s price competitiveness and exert pressure on margins,” Ta Ann said when commenting on its prospects for the financial year 2026 (FY26).
It noted that plywood demand in the Japanese market continues to be soft.
Ta Ann’s plywood products have been highly sought after in Japan due to their adherence to strict, certified and sustainable standards required for infrastructure projects.
The company’s Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification-certified plywood aligns with Japan’s stringent timber procurement policies.
Due to weak demand and depressed prices, Japan scaled back imports of tropical plywood from Malaysia and Indonesia – the top two suppliers – in 2025, according to annual data from Japan’s Finance Ministry cited in the International Tropical Timber Organisation’s Tropical Timber Market Report.
Last year, Japan imported 574,600 cu m of panel products from Malaysia, down from 587,700 cu m in 2024.
Indonesia overtook Malaysia again as the No 1 supplier of plywood to Japan, with shipments totalling 596,000 cu m in 2025.
According to the latest Japan Lumber Reports, a bi-monthy trade journal, imported plywood – including coated formwork panels – has seen weak movement in the Japanese market.
Japanese importers are reportedly facing negative margins on coated formwork plywood due to the weak yen, and although they aim to raise domestic prices, the progress has been slow as the market remains stagnant.
For Malaysian plywood, coated formwork panels (12mm 3x6) fetches between US$600-US$610 per cubic metre (cost and freight), standard formwork panels at US$500-US$510 per cubic metre, and structural plywood at US$510-US$520 per cubic metre in the Japanese market.
The Ta Ann group also manufactures plywood in its Tasmanian operations, with products catering to the domestic market there. In 2024, the Tasmanian plywood line produced 6,023 cu m and sold 3,834 cubic metre of panel products.
As a pioneer investor in commercial forest plantation in Sarawak, the group has in recent years utilised planted timber to complement logs from natural forests for its plywood manufacturing activities.
As at end-2024, the group owned 31,484 ha of forest plantations, comprising mainly acacia species. Some of the group’s planted forest are in their third rotation cycle.
“Log supply for downstream processing remains stable, supported by favourable weather conditions,” said Ta Ann, which currently manages three active forest management units in the Rejang region in central Sarawak covering 346,021 ha.
In FY25, Ta Ann posted a sharp increase in net profit to RM218.9mil versus RM180.6mil in FY24, as revenue expanded to RM1.93bil from RM1.65bil.
Year-on-year, the oil palm segment generated significantly higher revenue of RM1.74bil (FY24:RM1.45bil) and contributed a pre-tax profit of RM383,6mil (FY24: RM302.3mil).
This was attributable to higher average selling prices of crude palm oil and fresh fruit bunch by 7% and 6%, respectively, and higher sales volumes of 13% and 4% respectively.
The group owns and manages 13 oil palm estates covering some 72,500 ha, with a total planted area of 48,588 ha as at FY24, and operates three palm oil millls.
However, the timber products segment remained in the red, although its pre-tax loss narrowed to RM15mil (FY24: loss of RM26.6mil) on slightly higher sales of RM190.4mil (FY24: RM186.7mil) year-on-year. Besides plywood, the group also exports logs.
Going forward, Ta Ann said the group remains committed to prudent cost management, operational efficiency, and sustainable practices to enhance profitability and strengthen resilience across business cycles.
