Sum. (En, Fr); 4 tab.

Two characteristics of mechanical wood-processing industries favour the location of these industries in the log-producing developing countries - their labor-intensive nature and the potential savings in trasport costs brought about by their bulk-reducing nature. Historically, government interventions have played a decisive role in the determination of their location - direct and indirect subsidies, tariff escalation, and aggressive industrial export-promotion policies - in log-importing countries. Recently, however, major log-producing countries have taken steps to discourage or restrict log exports. The paper analyzes cost data for plywood production at various locations, policy measures affecting location of theses industries, and the patterns of tropical hardwood trade and discusses policy options for log-producing developing countries